Illustration by Jun Cen of people falling into a vortex

Querdenken Everything

Untruths and consequences

Decimal’s second collaboration with Long Lead, a story studio focused on finding, funding, producing, and publishing original, in-depth journalism, chronicles the tales of COVID-skeptics resisting Germany’s public health measures and ultimately storming the Reichstag in Berlin in August of 2020.

The story of that day and its consequences — told through Darren Loucaides’ immersive reporting and haunting illustrations by Jun Cen, is presented in a captivating 3D experience that captures the true tale of misinformation, its causes and effects.

Visit Site: untruthsandconsequences.com
Client: Long Lead
Type: Editorial
Industry: Publishing + Media

Poster image of a video recording of the experience.

Down the rabbit hole

Using WebGL, we designed an immersive experience intended to make users lose their sense of time and space. The 3-D spiral conveys how disorienting the stories are and how easily the subjects fall into chaos.

To reorient the reader, we provided color coding to identify the stories of the two main characters.

Cover image of a mobile screen recording of the introduction.

Cover image of a mobile screen recording of the first part.

Cover image of a screen recording showing transition from listing to detail of a part.

Illustrating misinformation

We integrated the illustrations of artist Jun Cen into the feature, providing a much more relatable, human feel, and helping the reader identify more closely with both protagonists.

Striking the right balance between descriptive and abstract, Cen’s work masterfully captured the complexity of these characters and their isolation.

Slide 1 of 8

Buildings and a street in Berlin. Illustration by Jun Cen for prologue a dark underground.

Girl walking towards a forest. illustration by Jun Cen of part 1, a bad feeling

People walking in an upside down world. Illustration by Jun Cen for part 2, a river flowing by

Woman holding a megaphone. Illustration by Jun Cen for part 3, the storming.

Man looking at mirrors with reflections of other people. Illustration by Jun Cen for part 4

The German Reichstag with the US Capitol above. Illustration by Jun Cen for part 5

Man sitting in lotus overlooking a countryside and buildings. Illustration by Jun Cen for part 6

Man and woman, on opposite sides, both leaning against a wall in center of the image. Illustration by Jun Cen for part 7

Drag

Cover image of a screen recording showing the last part

Connecting the dots

Beyond navigating the story using the main spiral, we also designed an index where dots act as windows into different parts of the story. This allows readers to see a content overview as well as access the distinct, but connected, parts of the story.