ANZ Breakpoint

Using virtual space to pitch, prototype and test a 54-square-metre physical experience.

Project story

I worked on ANZ Breakpoint as part of a multidisciplinary team, connecting 3D modelling, virtual reality and simulation to the design of a live event experience. The virtual environment helped us pitch the idea, test how it would work and refine the experience before people stepped onto the court.

The team needed to understand the experience before the full installation existed. The physical court, player movement, virtual game and projection all had to work as one clear interaction in a busy event environment.

I worked closely with creative direction and the event and activation designers, using 3D models and VR simulation to develop and test the concept. This gave the team a shared space for reviewing the idea as it moved from pitch into production.

Testing at scale

The 3D and VR work let us judge the installation at human scale before it existed, then carry those decisions into the built experience.

A lone player silhouette standing in front of an ANZ Breakpoint projection booth during installation testing.

Live experience

At the Australian Open, the idea became a shared physical experience: multiple projected courts and fast player sessions running side by side.

Multiple ANZ Breakpoint projection booths operating side by side with players inside the experience.
Crowds watching participants play across the ANZ Breakpoint installation at the Australian Open.
A young participant swinging a tennis racket inside the projected ANZ Breakpoint court.

Across 13 days, ANZ Breakpoint recorded more than 6,700 plays, with 75 per cent of players requesting their video. The project received Gold in Event Experience at the 2017 Melbourne Design Awards.