🏆 2023 Summer/Fall URP (Excellent Award)

DirActor

Siripon Sutthiwanna

Creating Interaction Illustrations by Oneself Through Directing and Acting Simultaneously in VR

In Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research papers, effectively conveying interaction concepts and demonstrating system functionalities is crucial, and this often hinges on the visual representation of user scenarios. Many HCI researchers, however, grapple with the challenge of creating accurate and efficient illustrations that depict human figures interacting with the system. Traditional approaches, including photography and drawing, often are physically and temporally demanding. To address these challenges, this study introduces Dir-Actor, a system that leverages virtual reality (VR) to assist researchers in effortlessly generating and manipulating human figures. Drawing inspiration from the dynamic between a film director and an actor, Dir-Actor offers intuitive and non-intrusive interaction sets that are easy to learn and use including voice command and camera manipulation via HUD gesture. This system empowers HCI researchers to quickly create multiple actor avatars, configure their poses, adjust scene setups, and effectively produce enriched scenario illustrations even when working solo.