Qianyue Yuwen
Personal project
mdp project
About me

MC739 ®

This project creates a playful perspective on the future of the flight experience filled with fast food, branding and automation, exploring the shift in identity of flight attendants and the service industry that is gradually being taken over by machines.

It consists of three scenarios. In the first scene, a flight attendant is putting on her fast food branding hat and adjusting the name tag in front of a McDonald-themed plane, introducing the specificity of the profession. In the second scene, the flight attendant drops food onto a conveyor belt and the food is delivered to each seat, reflecting the reduction of service in the cabin and automation as a substitute. In this case, the direction of the conveyor belt suggests the prioritization of food choices, alluding to the class cabin, food, and society. In the third scene, under the “watchful” eye of the flight attendants, the remaining food passes through the detection device, and the food that has been detected by the AI as untouched will be frozen and stored for the next flight's meal.

Brief

How will we work tomorrow? Where will we work tomorrow? What will we work on tomorrow? What will “work” be, tomorrow? Will we work tomorrow? Why do we work? (...and who is "we"?)

There was a time when everything was “work.” In this studio, we will engage in a collective inquiry about this huge topic. Rather than attempt to be comprehensive (which would be impossible), we will instead focus on novel perspectives from guest experts and selected references. Based on these primary and secondary research sources, our central interest in this studio will be on “question finding”: that is, identifying and articulating specific design issues/ domains/ problems/ opportunities regarding the nature of work now and in the near future.

Research & Plan

This project began with a thought about food waste on airplanes. I wanted to design a future of in-flight careers centered on the transformation of the airplane dining experience.

I researched the causes of airplane meal waste and the several types of solutions nowadays.

And develop a plan for further research

Inspiration & Develop

I got inspiration from Kuro Sushi. This is a solution to automate instead of service. Also I found that the order of food before and after on the conveyor belt implied the hierarchy in the cabin.

Then I combined the food, cabin, and conveyor belt to make a prototype. Through this collage, more possibilities of discussion are born

A background for storytelling

Video Making

Based on some interviews with flight attendants, I sorted out the basic events of their day or trip, and then put those events into the future I envisioned and adapted them.

Out of these events, I selected three to create a video collage with environment sound effects designed to reflect what they do and the environment they work in.

Final Video