Life After BOB

The Chalice Study

2021-2022

What if AI could do the job of living your life better than you?

Synopsis

Life After BOB is a 50min anime movie built in the Unity game engine.

Life After BOB (LAB) imagines a future world in which the internet extends into our nervous system, psychotropic foods unify physical and psychic realities, AI entities are permitted to co-inhabit human minds, and anomie reigns.

In episode one ~ The Chalice Study ~ neural engineer Dr. Wong has installed an experimental AI named BOB (“Bag of Beliefs”) into the nervous system of his 10-year-old daughter Chalice. Designed to guide Chalice through the challenges of growing up in a volatile world, BOB confronts more and more of the conflicts in Chalice’s life on her behalf. As Dr. Wong begins to favor the BOB side of his daughter, and as BOB threatens to do the job of living Chalice’s life better than she can, Chalice wonders: what is left for her classic human self to do?

LAB has been presented live in real-time, featuring an interactive WORLDWATCHING mode for viewers to dive into any moment of the movie and explore the world and lore of LAB. Watch a rendered version of LAB below (subtitles in English, French, Spanish, German, Chinese, Korean).

Official launch site lifeafterbob.io

Exhibition History

Press & Interviews on LAB

Worldwatching Mode

Images

Production Credits

Written & Directed by: Ian Cheng ~ Produced by: Veronica So ~ Technical Producer: Ivaylo Getov ~ Animation Producer: Nick Sung ~ Director of Photography: Eric Yue ~ Editor: Jess Fulton ~ Animation Supervisor: Valerie Scheiber ~ Sound Design: Akritchalerm Kalayanamitr ~ Music by: Brian Reitzell

Voice Performances
Chalice Wong, BOB: Poonam Basu ~ Chalice (20), Chyna: Cherami Leigh ~ Dr. James Moonweed Wong: Dana Lee ~ Chairman Ava: Gwendoline Yeo ~ Zoroaster: Sean Patton ~ Orlando de Blair, Commander Alan: Aly Mawji ~ Princess Wendy (voice of ZIM): Jennifer Swanner ~ Sister San: Poonam Basu ~ ZIM Engineers: Ivaylo Getov ~ Humanistas: Jennifer Swanner, Gensho Tasaka

Animation
Lead Animation: Paul Wood, Corey Stisser, Jenna Jaillet ~ Mocap Editor & Layout: David Peng ~ Additional Animation: Lauren Assadofsky, Craig Maras, Rob Somers, David Cohen ~ Movement Design & Choreography: Madeline Hollander ~ Mocap Performance: Caroline Bloom ~ Facial Mocap Performance: Ivaylo Getov, Veronica So ~ Character Rigging: Chris Nelder ~ Mocap & Maya Pipeline: Twisted Mountain Animation, Kerie Green, Fraser Sunderland

Art Department
Production Design: Elle Michalka, James Noellert ~ Character Design: Alice Lemma, Sophie Li ~ Lead Concept Artist: Linnea Sterte ~ Additional Concept Design: Jonathan Djob Nkondo, James Paterson, Jay Quercia, Alvin Fai, Eran Hilleli ~ Character Modeling: Maritza Louis ~ Lead Environment Artist: Shuruq Tramontini Additional 3D Modeling: Caco Peguero, Shanaz Byrne, Breht O’Hearn, Travis Ragsdale ~ Title and Poster Design: Vasilis Marmatakis ~ ZIM Corporate Design: Kenneth Cheng

Story Department
Head of Story: Nick Sung ~ Story Artist: Kallen Chi ~ Story Consultants: Anthony Weintraub, Adam Thirlwell

Unity Real-time Cinematics Development
Technical Director: Ivaylo Getov ~ Lead Unity Artist: Shuruq Tramontini ~ Technical Supervisor: Corbin Ordel ~ Graphics Developer: Nicholas Shelton ~ Developers: Samuel Eng, Yang Wang ~ VFX Designer: Sam Loeschen ~ VFX Artist: Ryan Zeng ~ Additional VFX: Rui An ~ Crowd Animation: Corey Stisser ~ Procedural Wardrobe Stylist: Veronica So ~ Unity Tools Developer: Cezar Mocan

Unity Interactive Development
Interactive Design: FLOAT ~ Wiki Developer: Alden Rivendale Jones ~ World Watching Developer: Oren Shoham World Watching Artist: Shuruq Tramontini ~ UX Artist: Samuel Eng ~ UX Developer: Cezar Mocan ~ Additional Wiki Design: Sixing Xu ~ Interactive Assistant Pei Barth Wu

Sound Department
Re-recording Mix: Akritchalerm Kalayanamitr ~ Surround Mastering Mix: Michael Barry ~ Sound Assistant: Jiho Kim ~ ADR Engineering: Ivaylo Getov ~ Additional ADR Engineering: Matt Mehlan, Tyler Swanner, Nick Chirumbolo ~ Sound Post Production Supervisor: Traithep Wongpaiboon ~ Foley Recordists: Jirapong Mingkwan, Narongsak Deetae ~ Foley Artists: Thanasak Julakate, Supawit Bhovijitra, Narongsak Deetae, Amornpong Thokaeonopparat ~ Foley Editors: Chalida Buranabunpot, Nusorn Thongkhum, Napatz Singkarat ~ Foley Production Coordinators: Veerin Kongsuwan, Aoun Patiporn, Chatlada Saijaioub ~ Score Mixer: Kenneth Sluiter ~ String Arrangements: Roger Joseph Manning Jr. ~ Guitar: Dave Harrington ~ Vocals: Hazel Reitzell ~ Instrument Builder: Chris Banta

Additional Production
Associate Producer: Kyrha Lever ~ Production Advisor: Laura Lupton ~ Additional Production: Metis Suns LLC

Co-Commissioned By
The Shed, New York ~ Luma Foundation, Arles ~ Light Art Space, Berlin ~ Additional Support by Leeum Museum of Art, Seoul ~ Research developed with Berggruen Institute, The Transformations of The Human ~ Production developed with Gladstone Gallery, New York & Pilar Corrias Gallery, London

Thanks
Barbara Gladstone, Pilar Corrias, Emma Enderby, Hans Ulrich Obrist, Alessandra Gomez, Alex Poots, Maja Hoffmann, Vassilis Oikonomopoulos, Luz Gyalui, Amira Gad, Liz Stumpf, Bettina Kames, Gina Lee, Nicolas Berggruen, Tobias Rees, Alissa Bennett, Marie Krauss, Ben Vickers, Venkatesh Rao, Sean Manning, Ron Martin, Steve Zapata, Amelia Rose Blaire, Bryan Dechart, Dean Panaro, David Kaplan, Lucie Elwes, Matthew Rogers, Tina Rogers, John So, Jenny Wong, Diana Rose, Jonathan Rose, Kenneth Cheng, Chukyee Cheng, Rachel Rose

Welcome To This Life
Eden Rose Cheng, Daphne Noellert, Matilda Steely-Getov, James Jaillet, Jovian Rogers, Milo Mecca, Silas Rose Cheng

Production Drawings

LAB DRAWINGS

2019-2023. Double-sided, 8.5inch x 11inch, ink on grey stock.

LAB First Tract

LAB began as a 16 page comic published in limited edition in 2019. It served as the inspiration for ideating the world of LAB and writing The Chalice Study.