Trapped in a Dream: A Creative Coding Journey
Rooted in a surreal personal experience, this project translates the disorientation of a recurring dream into an interactive, playable digital environment. Using creative coding, motion graphics, and spatial design, the work explores what it feels like to be stuck between reality and imagination.
The Dream That Sparked It All
The project began with a vivid dream I could not escape.
Each time I opened a door, I entered a new space that felt familiar yet wrong. The environment kept changing, but I remained trapped inside it. Panic set in as I realized I was aware I was dreaming, yet unable to wake myself up or move in the real world.
The only anchor to reality was the faint sound of NBA news playing in the background. When my husband opened the door in real life, I jolted awake. The first thing I did was look at the ceiling, checking whether I was truly back.
From Dream to Code
This experience became my first exploration into creative coding using p5.js. With support from open source experiments on OpenProcessing, I began translating the emotional logic of the dream into interactive visuals.
Rather than recreating the dream literally, I focused on capturing its sensation. Repetition, uncertainty, and spatial disorientation became the foundation of the system.
Sketching the Dream World
I began by mapping the dream as a series of rooms and portals. Rough sketches helped define how scenes would repeat, shift, and trap the viewer within the system.
These early explorations guided the transition from static drawings to motion studies and interactive forms.
A Clicky Maze
The experience opens with a warning: “Proceed with Caution!!! It’s a trap.”
Users navigate the environment using mouse clicks and arrow keys, moving through a series of rooms that constantly shift and transform. The maze offers the illusion of progress, but most paths loop back into the system.
The only escape appears randomly as a hidden door in the bottom left corner. Finding it requires attention and awareness, echoing the moment of realizing you are trapped inside a dream.
Beyond the Screen
The project expanded into physical form through a printed maze and two posters. The maze has no clear entrance or exit, mirroring the confusion of the digital experience.
Just like the game, navigating the physical maze requires conscious effort, reinforcing the theme of awareness and escape across mediums.
CREDITS:Thanks to Ejaz Veljee and Vera van de Seyp for their support and guidance.
Special thanks to FelixTse, watabo_shi, and Gabe Hurraaay for open source references that informed the development of this work.