about the project

SUE the T. rex Experience Traveling Exhibition

In collaboration with exhibit developers and lighting designers, I helped adapt the Field Museum’s permanent SUE the T. rex Experience into a traveling exhibition. The challenge was to recreate the immersive storytelling experience—originally reliant on projection mapping—using portable theatrical lighting and a replicated skeleton.

My Role

• Designed forest and asteroid lighting effects in After Effects as references for atmosphere, look, and timing.

• Collaborated with lighting designers to translate digital concepts into theatrical light fixtures.

• Partnered with the exhibit developer to co-write and refine the script for the traveling version.

Process

1. Script & Narration – Worked with the exhibit developer to rewrite and streamline narration for the replicated skeleton. Produced an animatic with timed lighting cues to serve as a guide for lighting designers.

2. Lighting Design Adaptation – Since projection mapping could not be used, we explored UV paint to highlight SUE’s injuries (jaw holes, broken ribs, injured leg, arthritis, and fused tail joints).

3. Collaboration – Iterated with the lighting team to ensure that the new cues preserved both the visual storytelling and scientific accuracy of the original show.

The traveling version successfully preserved the immersive, educational impact of the original Field Museum exhibition while remaining logistically feasible for touring. The result is a show that continues to highlight SUE’s dramatic history—through light, narration, and visual storytelling—without reliance on projection mapping.