Snap Elementary

Snap Lens Academy

Challenge

We were tasked with creating an interactive AR experience leveraging the skills we had learned throughout Snap Lens Academy, split into teams of 3 to inform, spread awareness, and create a call to action related to the social issue we were given.

Timeframe: 3 weeks, July - August 2023

Teammates: Chibundu Onwuegbule, Miranda White

My Role: 3D Modeling & Environment, UX Design

Problem

How can we build greater social consciousness on the topic of education through an AR lens experience built in Lens Studio?

Insight

We learned that uneven resources due to funding disparities in schools lead to unequal opportunities for students.

Solution

Our goal was to create awareness, bridging the education gap by focusing on students' needs for success by building an interactive lens through the perspective of an elementary teacher that allows users to explore an immersive classroom environment while educating our users on the issue and how they can take action.

Ideation

We were inspired by the ABC sitcom Abbot Elementary and started with a rough draft of what our front and back camera lens experience could look like. We started with the intention to create two classrooms side by side, comparing the differences in funding disparities.

Rough draft

Front camera

Back camera

Considering the current lens size and the timeframe to complete the project, we decided to create just one classroom. We leveraged remote assets to increase our available lens size for submission, optimizing the performance - loading faster, and allowed us to maximize the number of available on demand assets from the Lens cloud.

Two classrooms

Limiting file size

One classroom with remote assets

Leveraging remote assets

Final Lens

Front camera experience:

Transforming into a teacher’s point of view at Snap Elementary, the UI buttons allow the user to learn more about the disparities in the education system through a series of informational flashcards. This also allowed the audience to engage with the educational aspect, if there was limited space for them to physically explore the back camera lens experience.

UI button

Educational experience

Back camera experience:

When the back camera is activated, the user is prompted with a message. The doors open to the classroom portal, immersing the user into an environment with interactive Snap ghosts that share the same information as the front lens.

Message prompt

Portal entrance

3D environment

After tapping Snap ghosts

Information placed by relevant objects

A shelf of CTA Snap ghosts were placed with a message on the wall, to help inform users how they can take action to make changes in the education system regarding the issue of funding disparities.

CTA wall message

After tapping Snap ghosts

Takeaways

I felt that we had successfully created an interactive AR experience built in Lens Studio that informs, spreads awareness, and a call to action that encourages users to take the next steps in making changes within the education system.

This experience has given me the opportunity to further understand the importance of open communication, trust, and honesty within a team dynamic when challenges arise. I would also like to continue learning JavaScript, so I can make more efficient designs as a lens creator.

Next Steps

My next steps, for the front lens, would be to update the placement of the information cards to fit within the safe render component, to prevent interference with Snapchat’s native UI on mobile devices. I would also change the colors of the UI button and font to meet accessibility standards.

For the back lens, I would like to continue utilizing the remote assets with other objects in the room. The Snap ghosts, I would like to add more interaction to the tapping experience, perhaps a change of color or a hover element. And, I would incorporate lighting to the 3D environment, highlighting shadows, and creating a higher quality appearance.