Watch the VR Experience in Action → AROUND THE FORK
INSTITUTION
Politecnico di Milano
YEAR
2025
ROLE
· NPC Design & Animation · Foley Artist
TEAM
· Beatriz Lara · Sofia Robles · Siyuan Yan · Aranza Alcala
The Challenge
Many residents remain unfamiliar with the cultural diversity that exists within their own city, often staying within familiar neighborhoods and dining habits. Our challenge was to create an experience that encourages curiosity, cultural exploration, and learning through immersive and sensory-driven interactions.
My Role
I designed and animated the NPCs that populate each environment, helping create a more natural and believable cultural atmosphere. After selecting and adapting character animations, I carefully matched each NPC to the appropriate environment and narrative context. I also curated and edited ambient sounds, music, and audio effects to reinforce the identity of each cultural setting and support the interactive mini-games throughout the experience.
Outcome
A fully functional VR prototype that combines cultural storytelling, food interaction, spatial audio, and scent-based feedback to encourage users to explore Milan's multicultural identity through play and immersion.
Smooth Scroll
This will hide itself!
This will hide itself!
AROUND THE FORK
An immersive VR experience that invites users to explore Milan's multicultural neighborhoods through food, sound, scent, and play. Users board a virtual tram across three neighborhoods — Sarpi (Chinese), Loreto (Latin American), and Duomo (Italian) — each with its own characters, mini-games, and scent emissions triggered by Arduino.
Watch the VR Experience in Action → AROUND THE FORK
INSTITUTION
Politecnico di Milano
YEAR
2025
ROLE
· NPC Design & Animation · Foley Artist
TEAM
· Beatriz Lara · Sofia Robles · Siyuan Yan · Aranza Alcala
The Challenge
Many residents remain unfamiliar with the cultural diversity that exists within their own city, often staying within familiar neighborhoods and dining habits. Our challenge was to create an experience that encourages curiosity, cultural exploration, and learning through immersive and sensory-driven interactions.
My Role
I designed and animated the NPCs that populate each environment, helping create a more natural and believable cultural atmosphere. After selecting and adapting character animations, I carefully matched each NPC to the appropriate environment and narrative context. I also curated and edited ambient sounds, music, and audio effects to reinforce the identity of each cultural setting and support the interactive mini-games throughout the experience.
Outcome
A fully functional VR prototype that combines cultural storytelling, food interaction, spatial audio, and scent-based feedback to encourage users to explore Milan's multicultural identity through play and immersion.
Smooth Scroll
This will hide itself!
This will hide itself!
AROUND THE FORK
An immersive VR experience that invites users to explore Milan's multicultural neighborhoods through food, sound, scent, and play. Users board a virtual tram across three neighborhoods — Sarpi (Chinese), Loreto (Latin American), and Duomo (Italian) — each with its own characters, mini-games, and scent emissions triggered by Arduino.
Watch the VR Experience in Action → AROUND THE FORK
INSTITUTION
Politecnico di Milano
YEAR
2025
ROLE
· NPC Design & Animation · Foley Artist
TEAM
· Beatriz Lara · Sofia Robles · Siyuan Yan · Aranza Alcala
The Challenge
Many residents remain unfamiliar with the cultural diversity that exists within their own city, often staying within familiar neighborhoods and dining habits. Our challenge was to create an experience that encourages curiosity, cultural exploration, and learning through immersive and sensory-driven interactions.
My Role
I designed and animated the NPCs that populate each environment, helping create a more natural and believable cultural atmosphere. After selecting and adapting character animations, I carefully matched each NPC to the appropriate environment and narrative context. I also curated and edited ambient sounds, music, and audio effects to reinforce the identity of each cultural setting and support the interactive mini-games throughout the experience.
Outcome
A fully functional VR prototype that combines cultural storytelling, food interaction, spatial audio, and scent-based feedback to encourage users to explore Milan's multicultural identity through play and immersion.
Smooth Scroll
This will hide itself!
This will hide itself!