Sunspots

In Sunspots, virtual objects interact in a 3D physics simulation to create sound environments and suggest narratives.

Two reflective spheres are trapped in a transparent cube. The spheres' collisions with the cube produce a sonic landscape intentionally reminiscent of early ambient music of the 1970s: the movements and collisions produced by the physics simulation are a 21st century analogue of the tape loops utilized by ambient music pioneers. 

The dual reflections on each sphere, while technically a simple artifact of the lighting and texturing of the virtual space, when seen as eyes also impart a personality to each sphere, and suggest the dynamics of the spheres' changing relationships as they explore their prison.

Sunspots also tests the limits of the physics simulation itself: as the spheres' collisions amplify each other and their motion becomes more frenetic, eventually, suddenly, the physics simulation breaks down and the solidity of the clear cage cannot be maintained: the spheres break free.