Against All Odds
Description: Against All Odds is a virtual reality (VR) experience that focuses on creating empathy by means of light, sound, and a minimalist approach to materiality. The user experiences this world from a child’s perspective as they attempt to escape from a holding facility, only to walk into a hate speech rally and be followed by menacing, faceless figures. This VR piece embodies the narrative of “children in cages” in an effort to expose the user to an ongoing humanitarian catastrophe at the U.S. Texas border that is fueled by the hate rhetoric of the current U.S. administration.
About Gustavo C. Tepetla: I am an immigrant, non-traditional, first-generation, commuting, parenting, disabled student of color. I represent a demographic of underrepresented students and marginalized identities. This fuels my sense of social responsibility to advocate and aid this community, all in effort to create an equitable and diverse space in academia and beyond. I focus my skill set as a Design Media Artist to aid in building community within UCLA.
