Our Story
The David Letterman Learning Experience is the result of a yearlong effort to create a digital exhibition space that immerses users in David Letterman's career.
Our Project
Problem Space
During the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly 90% of museums globally were closed as a measure to limit the spread of the virus (United Nations News, 2020). In addition to a profound public health crisis, the impact of the epidemic on a museum’s revenue base has been significant.
Many have experienced extreme setbacks and have laid off staff. Some have even closed forever (Tully, 2020).
Many museums will not recover from the financial losses caused by the global shutdown. The American Alliance of Museums estimates one-third of museums will permanently close in the United States alone.
Research Question
How might we leverage the rich storytelling potential of the DLLE collection to create a collaborative and social experience for audiences who cannot gather in physical spaces?
To address this question, DLLE students focused research efforts on COVID-19’s effect on museum engagement by exploring interactive web design and the 1,000 artifacts shared with Ball State University in the David Letterman collection.
The Solutions
Research led to the design and development of Thanks for Laughing– a virtual museum experience that is accessible from any location, a social media campaign to promote the DLLE project, and a DLLE project website.
Our Process
Thanks for Laughing
Thanks for Laughing is a web-based, interactive experience that highlights iconic moments from David Letterman’s life and career. From the comfort of home, users can explore four digital rooms.
Structural Elements
Thanks for Laughing mimics a “choose your own adventure” experience by providing users with multiple options to navigate and explore content.
Users can explore four “rooms,” or exhibition spaces focused on different topics relevant to Dave’s life and career, as well as artifacts from the Letterman Collection.
Read more about each room below.
American Humor Room
This room focuses on three of the many awards Dave has received: Kennedy Center Honor, Peabody, and The Mark Twain Prize. Through the use of animated quotes, audio clips and video clips, users can hear and see famous comedians as they talk about the influence Dave has had on their lives.
Dot Tile Room
The Dot Tile Room is based on an obscure object’s interesting journey from late show sets to Ball State’s campus. Although one of the artifacts – a framed tile with a red dot glued in the corner – looks like art, it is actually a floor tile used to mark Dave’s placement on set to deliver his nightly monologue.
Art of the Interview Room
The Art of the Interview room presents with a unique timeline of Dave’s memorable interviews to reflect his various interviewing methods. Content dives into the Ball State University Letterman Speaker Series, late night shows, and My Next Guest Needs No Introduction.
Studio Tour Room
The team continues to build a 3D model of the Late Show with David Letterman studio. Through this experience, users can visit the Ed Sullivan Theater. Using first-person perspective, the tour follows a fixed path that includes pop-up content for further exploration.
American Humor Room
This room focuses on three of the many awards Dave has received: Kennedy Center Honor, Peabody, and The Mark Twain Prize. Through the use of animated quotes, audio clips and video clips, users can hear and see famous comedians as they talk about the influence Dave has had on their lives.
Dot Tile Room
The Dot Tile Room is based on an obscure object's interesting journey from late show sets to Ball State's campus. Although one of the artifacts – a framed tile with a red dot glued in the corner – looks like art, it is actually a floor tile used to mark Dave's placement on set to deliver his nightly monologue.
Studio Tour Room
The team continues to build a 3D model of the Late Show with David Letterman studio. Through this experience, users can visit the Ed Sullivan Theater. Using first-person perspective, the tour follows a fixed path that includes pop-up content for further exploration.
Art of the Interview Room
The Art of the Interview room presents with a unique timeline of Dave’s memorable interviews to reflect his various interviewing methods. Content dives into the Ball State University Letterman Speaker Series, late night shows, and My Next Guest Needs No Introduction.
Social Media Campaign
Social media platforms will soon tell the story of the David Letterman Learning Experience. Content will introduce DLLE past and current projects, provide additional context behind technologies pieces used, and expand on David Letterman archival materials.
The campaign will launch in Fall of 2021.
DLLE Website
This site aims to elaborate on the stories and content produced by students. Additionally, the site will include information related to David Letterman and the Center for Emerging Media Design & Development.
Key Stats
Our Team
