SceneAR: Scene-based Micro Narratives for Sharing and Remixing in Augmented Reality
This work addresses the need for more immersive and interactive storytelling tools for general users, though it is incremental as it builds on existing AR and narrative concepts.
The authors tackled the problem of expanding short-form digital storytelling from 2D to 3D media by developing SceneAR, a smartphone app for creating and sharing scene-based micro narratives in augmented reality, and found through a study with 18 users that it enabled users to experience and remix AR content in their own environments, leading to six design strategies.
Short-form digital storytelling has become a popular medium for millions of people to express themselves. Traditionally, this medium uses primarily 2D media such as text (e.g., memes), images (e.g., Instagram), gifs (e.g., Giphy), and videos (e.g., TikTok, Snapchat). To expand the modalities from 2D to 3D media, we present SceneAR, a smartphone application for creating sequential scene-based micro narratives in augmented reality (AR). What sets SceneAR apart from prior work is the ability to share the scene-based stories as AR content -- no longer limited to sharing images or videos, these narratives can now be experienced in people's own physical environments. Additionally, SceneAR affords users the ability to remix AR, empowering them to build-upon others' creations collectively. We asked 18 people to use SceneAR in a 3-day study. Based on user interviews, analysis of screen recordings, and the stories they created, we extracted three themes. From those themes and the study overall, we derived six strategies for designers interested in supporting short-form AR narratives.