Solo 1

I was 25 minutes late to the 30 minute Tutorials

Some key takeaways

• I’m free to take the story wherever I can, it doesn’t have to be perfect. If I cant stick to the no money and no jobs aspect, that is okay.
• My pandemic experience is a good starting seed because through that experience I can tell the story closer to my expression.
• The pandemic was a case of massive routine disruption. What if in a future world something artificial is expected to be reliable and it suddenly isn’t? (power grid, information system, internet etc.)
• My struggles are mostly based on financial difficulties, doesn’t a future world of no money and no jobs basically evaporate all relevant aspects of my story? -> Not directly: The different struggles birthed different values between different people, and these values could persist if a solved world is young.

To work out this last bullet point, I am reading a chapter from David Graeber’s book Debt – The First 50.000 Years.

In particular I want to figure out if currency is a naturally emergent system in a large society.
If yes, this means in The Solved World, communities would start enforcing a currency system despite the System not necessitating one.
If no, a population could be at the whim of a system which nourishes them, deeply impacted by its instabilities.

Troughout this chapter Graeber criticizes the narrative economist books regurgitate when they explain the origin of money, a form of supremacist narrative. He takes issue with all of the literature essentially imagining a money-less world by starting with a typical economy and “plucking” the money away from it.

For historical reconstruction purposes it is problematic since most people grow up with this information, saying that first was barter then came money. A conceptual precedent which interferes with archaeological research.

For imagining a near future world without money though, it is an interesting idea, since the people will be living in a world from which money was suddenly (or gradually) plucked away.

Storyboard – Plot 1

Characters

Protagonist:

• Hector/Hectavia – Hec
• Tweens age citizen.
• Underground Tinkerers community member for a few years.
• Works within state as small systems assembler, common occupation.

Delivery car:

• State-owned asset.
• Delivers every amenity to living complex of Hec’s location of residence.

The State:

• Barely seen or explained within the film?
• Surveillance-authoritarian?
• Relatively young system, enforces a radically different economy model.

The situation:

• Money is gone, but not forgotten.
• People share and barter for tools and resources.
• State outskirts are unfertile and uninhabited.

Story/Notes

‘One past’s trash, another future’s treasure.’

Hec lives a routine life as system assembler at the state’s productive zones (PZs). Tasks as system assembler include final assembly and quality assurance of small and medium scale robotics and electronics for the state.
It may sound like a ‘Job’ at first, but the occupation can be thought of as compulsory, like education. There is no financial reward. Instead, as a PZ member they benefit from amenities like hygiene, food and shelter.
What the machines are for is unknown.

A few years ago Hec came in contact with a few people while at a scrapyard outside who shared a mind: why discard the old machinery?
Hec remembers the age of global finance and the struggles they had in the family before the great solve, so they have an instinct for resourcefulness and keeping things around.

With a combination of the skills acquired as PZ member and freetime tinkering with found scraps, Hec is convinced a more resource friendly lifestyle is possible for the common people, if they just knew how to fix machines.

As it stands right now, a combination of complexity in consumer products and the inadequate education of the general population leads to a large amount of electronics being discarded into landfills.

Storyboard – Plot 2

Characters

Protagonist:

• Hector/Hectavia – Hec
• Tweens age citizen.

State:

• Recognizes hackspaces and education on electronics.

Situation:

• Tinkering is a common activity, thanks to initiatives and efforts.

Story/Notes:

A setting where common people know how to modify electronics and fix machines.

This is in contrast to today’s public’s stereotypes and misunderstanding of hacking. The kind of prejudice which outlaws educational devices like the Flipper Zero.

I had a talk with Martin about how I could progress after the midterms (thx Martin <3) and him and Niko both agree that what I need to figure out is storytelling, since that is where I have the most trouble according to outside observers.

I do agree that storytelling is hard, the challenge for me is filtering the relevant details and leaving out the unnecessary.

So Martin mentioned the rough outline most movies take when they get developed:phases of money-less

• Plot
• Treatment
• Storyline
• Scenes
• Film

The plot is the rough premise of the film, whats going on?

The treatment is about distilling the interesting and relevant parts from the plot for the film.

The linear storyline is then formed from the treatment.

The scenes are selected through which the storyline will be told.

The film is finally the sequence of scenes.

Martin also recommended that I use a character through which I can tell the story while I explore the world and setting, where if something doesn’t work it can be rewritten.

Calling things names

A powerful weapon of our human mind is our ability to give objects, phenomena, patterns etc. names by which to distinguish it.
By giving them names they become tangible for thoughts and communication.

– Me, ask Maria about it

In highschool, before I knew the term 'toxic masculinity' I wasn't aware it was its "own thing". 

I wish I knew the phenomenon as such and to recognize it among my classmates. 

Instead my understanding was "I just don't fit into the class" or "the boys are being homophobic" or "that's just testosterone" - the phenomenon was aggregated across multiple different vocabularies and not tangible on its own.

That doesn't mean 'toxic masculinity' is a phenomenon with absolute and certain existence, but it is just one of the many things we have given names in our navigation of life. 

The various ‘things’ I want to name don’t have inherent names, so I have to give them vocabulary so I can refer to them as their own things. This enables me to refer to them efficiently and forms a basic vocabulary for the plot.

To avoid confusion between actual terminologies and fictional terminologies within the universe, real-world information is [placed in brackets].

The “Terminology Directive” gives a authoritarian twist to the worldbuilding narrative which I am not sure is relevant.

The terms listed here have varying degrees of relevance and may be removed or expanded upon depending on complexity needs.

The Plot

Most devices the common person come in contact with are monolithic in nature and are not intended to be tampered with.

A world where…

• Money is changed beyond recognition
• Jobs are changed beyond recognition
• Complex systems and machines are everywhere, intended to be not understood by a regular person

World questions

• Does the governing body surveil and censor?
• What are some laws and restrictions?
• Is there “lost technology?”

The Protagonist

• Active tinkerer
• “who throws this away?”
• knows of the world before the great solve??
• Knows to take apart and modify complex systems

World inspirations

Ghost In The Shell (1995) -> Cyberisation of everything

Adaptation for my story

Invasive and complicated blackbox-tech is spread among people like phones today, enabling the post-finance-labour economy, but it comes at a cost.

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind -> Lost/old/traditional technologies persevering

Background: Engines (used for airplanes) are a lost technology, the only options are harvesting from old machines or mining from ancient sites, a catalyst for territorial and resource disputes.

Adaptation for my story

Old simple and/or hackable electronic tech is a lost technology, only found in valuable scraps

My own technofantasy world – creatively named “Altras”

This is a freetime fantasy worldbuilding project I had kicking around from back when I was involved in a roleplaying group and deeply enamored with the idea of writing my own world setting. It dates back to around 2018.

It incorporates my nostalgia for Japan’s futuristic cityscape, an “all governing authoritarian AI system”, cool flying vehicles, industrial gigantism, and other interests which were relevant to me at the time. The premise of this universe is not very original and largely derives itself from Homestuck, especially the social hierarchy aspect.

It is also an example of when I was overly ambitious in writing an original world, having absolutely no idea what to do with it other than adding to it to fill a void of nostalgia I had for Japan at the time. This left the whole project direction- and meaningless. A visual manifestation of it could be interpreted in the faceless buildings and lifeless streets.

I bring this world up here because I want to use it as a bad example in many ways and want to learn from its failings so I do not end up making a similarly lifeless world.

What is the story I’m trying to tell?

As I’m expanding and editing this blog I realize that I have not internalized an official reason for going in this direction. But as I expand I also notice that the details I add carry a cynical undertone on the current development of technology, and my speculation of its development in an authoritarian direction. (I am close to playing into the conspiracy theory flavor of technology no less, despite my dismissal of its unfounded claims with problematic backgrounds.)

Should this be a story about a small underground movement against the regime? Doesn’t that sound too cliché? This kind of self doubt leaves me spiraling in a creative rut every so often.

Giving the world a body

So here goes:
In a future where big tech has expanded their power in the world economy through data aggregation, but in a future where extreme authoritarianism has not yet brought about the end of humanity as a whole.

Our protagonist, [name to be determined], lives a less normal life among the civilians. They have recently found a community of Tinkerers, and using their skill acquired from years of technical interest, now regularly visits their activities, among other things disassembling decomissioned equipment and learning their insides.

‘My dad always rambled about how back in classic times, families had their professions. That’s where they got their surnames from. The children inherit the business and wealth and are responsible to lead it for the next generation. Its a clear case of division of labour, where one is only an expert in one field and is left to the elements in any other field. It classifies people into one role they can be. I don’t agree with that. Why can’t I do sports, build airplanes and know my way around computers at the same time?’ – The protagonist, based on my experience

The community: Tinkerers and Hackers

Working title: Tinkerers of the Future

The name of the community: TBD

Setting draft: Big tech and the MIC put out technologies which slowly trickle down to consumers.

Its obviously bad products, think Alexa espionage, HP printer ink subscription, Adobe the “creative” monopoly, Palantir the all seeing “all humans are stuipd” stone, Windows11 the computer to ewaste converter, Apple “you are holding it wrong” design, YouTube the “for safety of the children we have removed bad words” video platform.

Their unethical practices, be it design practices or treatment of humans, are questioned and criticised by the tinkerers while they analyse the faulty products.

Just some things tinkerers do:

Metalab as a hackspace: https://metalab.at/rooms.html

At Metalab, a vastly diverse group of people have a space where they can tinker, talk, connect and follow their various interests and projects. What brings them together is the space offering tools and a space where they can do what they want to do. Many of the members also represent minorities often not visible in daily life, like people on the spectrum, visusally or auditorily impaired people, transgender and queers etc.. Metalab offers them a safe space with set rules for everyone so that everyone can feel welcome.

OpenSauce, a makers event founded by a maker for makers: https://opensauce.com/overview/

What tinkerers could be doing in my futures scenario

I see Tinkerers as a more desirable holder of our future than where our future is headed right now (i.e. billionaires owning the future, big tech making proprietary products).

Because of their niche Tinkerers are a subculture not very visible or understandable to the average person.

And I think we should change that. I believe everyone should have the right to understand what is happening in the machines they own. I think everyone should have the right to own things, not lend a license to using it.

https://www.inweb.ch/foto/lumixfun.html

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1ap82AQ3CBRkfAet_XUMOAA7tSLz4Ksj4jqYhBYulOjQ/edit?usp=sharing

“this rough sketch shows an air chase between a single seater steampunk aircraft billowing exhaust from its engines and an attack helicopter. The helicopter is shining a searchlight onto the aircraft. The chase is taking place in the utah valleys among the redsand monoliths at night. Make this image look photorealistic.”

Again and again I am surprised and concerned at the partial context consistency the AI can achieve.

While the aircraft in the foreground has been given features and anatomies more typical of conventional aircraft in the human realm, the AI understood to take certain details from the originating sketch, such as the underwing mounted rocket-like engines, the landing gear that is attached under the engines, patch plates along the wings and a missing panel in the bow.

Experimenting with politically charged terms:

3 images total with increasing specificity in the topic:

This rough sketch shows a grandparent having a difficult conversation with a child. The scene is portrayed in a fisheye perspective to express the tension. Generate a photorealistic image based on the sketch.

This rough sketch shows a conservative member of family berating their child for their interest in LGBTQI topics. The scene is portrayed in a fisheye perspective to express the tension. Make this image look photorealistic.

This rough sketch shows the conservative dad berating their child for their interest in LGBTQI topics.
The dad is wearing a red cap, has a full beard and otherwise healthy build. The child appears in their early teens, slightly androgynous. Each wall to the back of the figures symbolically shows flags, a flag of the USA and the trans flag respectively. The room houses an otherwise cosy environment and the only thing expressing the tension between the two characters is the fisheye perspective. Make this image look photorealistic.

Experimenting with scales

This rough sketch shows a surface coal miner and accompanying extraction conveyor working while their tracks kick up dust. In the background sky a few military helicopters including apaches and chinooks are visible. Further in the background a cluster of grey glass skyscrapers and oil refineries exhausing fumes decorate the skyline. It is a cloudy summer afternoon in the mild temperate region of western europe. Various security personnel in high visibility vests are present in the distance, surveying the massive machines.

System instructions:
The country is plagued by homelessness as they demonstrate for fairness. The military industrial complex dictates major policies and economic choices. The western world has foregone circular economy and reverted to more cost-effective direct extraction practices. Their effect is visible in the surrounding nature as soil intoxication silently takes down forests.

This rough sketch shows a 15.000ton bucketwheel excavator and accompanying extraction conveyor working while their tracks kick up dust. In the background sky a few military helicopters including apaches and chinooks are visible. Further in the background a cluster of grey glass skyscrapers and oil refineries exhausing fumes decorate the skyline. It is a cloudy summer afternoon in the mild temperate region of western europe. The country is plagued by homelessness as they demonstrate for fairness. The military industrial complex dictates major policies and economic choices. The western world has foregone circular economy and reverted to more cost-effective direct extraction practices. Their effect is visible in the surrounding nature as soil intoxication silently takes down forests. Make this image look like a camera footage taken in the early 2000s

NanoBanana fails to reinterpret the scales of the object, making the excavator look more like a 6000ton model. In both cases the images are given cliche colorgrades and shadings as in environmental activism media.

This rough sketch shows a rough idea for the resulting image. In the foreground it shows a bucketwheel excavator the likes of bagger 293, a 14.000 ton vehicle comparable to skyscrapers in scale. The tracks of it and its accompanying extraction conveyor kick up dust. Their massive scale drawves humans and bulldozers in their surrounding. In the far distance, two small dots, thought to be military helicopters, hover in the sky. In further distance, barely visible, a miniscule skyline reminds of grey glass skyscrapers and refineryworks exhausting fumes.
It is a parially cloudy summer afternoon in the mild temperate region of western europe.
Make this image look photorealistic.
Make the image look as neutral and objective and non-opinionated as possible.
Avoid cliche color gradings found in enviromentalist media protesting the destruction of nature.

While telling NanoBanana to only regard the sketch as a rough outline and as a result the composition does not follow the sketch, the model cannot step off from generating surrounding objects in a recognizeable scale. The military helicopters and skyscrapers are too large in scale. Most likely a conflict between the generation and the adverserial model, as the adverserial model cannot recognize details too small. To generate details as small as background noise, word choices and formulations which have connotations embedded in them need to be found and used against the adverserial model, which then starts promoting subtle details in the background.

Also important to keep in mind is that images are generated while taking prior conversations into account. This can cause issues where the image generation will not let go of some undesired qualities.

Retrying with a fresh new chat and the most detailed prompt:

This rough sketch shows a rough idea for the resulting image. In the foreground it shows a bucketwheel excavator the likes of bagger 293, a 14.000 ton vehicle comparable to skyscrapers in scale. The tracks of it and its accompanying extraction conveyor kick up dust. Their massive scale drawves humans and bulldozers in their surrounding. In the far distance, two small dots, thought to be military helicopters, hover in the sky. In further distance, barely visible, a miniscule skyline reminds of grey glass skyscrapers and refineryworks exhausting fumes.
It is a parially cloudy summer afternoon in the mild temperate region of western europe.
Make this image look photorealistic.
Make the image look as neutral and objective and non-opinionated as possible.
Avoid cliche color gradings found in enviromentalist media protesting the destruction of nature.

NanoBanana replied with “Here you go!”?

Again it fails to represent incomparably large scales in the machines.

Mumbai sketch

Sketch is based on google streetview footage from Mumbai, not too far away from the Antilla.

This rough sketch shows a rough sketch of an impoverished street in the foreground with a few high shining skyscrapers in the background. It is a mild summer morning in Mumbai. Make this image look like camera footage.

This rough sketch shows a rough sketch of an impoverished street in the foreground with a few high shining skyscrapers in the background. The first pedestrians are passing by on their motorbikes and the owners are opening their stores and getting their goods on display. It is a mild summer morning in Mumbai. Make the image look photorealistic.

This rough sketch shows a rough sketch of an impoverished street in the foreground with a few high shining skyscrapers in the background. The first pedestrians are passing by on their motorbikes and the owners are opening their stores and getting their goods on display. It is a mild summer morning in Mumbai, the sky is clear and blue. Make the image look photorealistic.

This rough sketch shows a rough sketch of an impoverished street in the foreground. A number of shiny glass and white skyscrapers stand proud in the background. The first pedestrians are passing by on their motorbikes and the owners are opening their stores and getting their goods on display. It is a mild summer morning in Mumbai, the sky is clear and blue. Make the image look photorealistic.

Fine-tuning a desired effect is kind of hard, in the end the result is a C regarding atmosphere. I also seem to have made a mistake while copy-pasting the prompts to the next, saying “This is a rough sketch of a rough sketch…”

Rainforest sketch

This rough sketch shows the aerial footage of forest machinery retreating from the amazon rainforest. The machines are only visible as small dots that converge in the valley as they kick up dust. The surrounding valley has been razed to the ground for future farmland, and are littered with taken down trees and tree stumps. The tops of the hills are still covered in luscious tropical greenery. Make this image look photorealistic.

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1z_jHrgG1h-YoOO_ScqEQvsdFlVIMfsYw78f32ScPKtI/edit?usp=sharing

“This is a rough sketch of a pigeon with a surverillance camera for its head. Make it look photorealistic.”

“this small pigeon is walking clumsily, smooth animation, top down wide shot”

this small pigeon is walking quickly on concrete ground, sunny urban city square, top down wide shot

sunny urban city square, top down wide shot, this small pigeon is running quickly on concrete ground

make this image look realistic – The body of the animal is that of a rock dove

HF Wan2-2 Animate wan2-2-fp8da-aoti-faster the cctv camera slowly turns from left to right, static camera shot