# The816

> The portfolio and blog of Chris Riebschlager, a Kansas City creative technology leader who builds interactive installations and immersive experiences.

Chris leads Creative Technology at Dimensional Innovations. His work spans TouchDesigner, creative coding, interactive installations, experience design, and venue-scale projects. Every link below points to a Markdown version of the page; prefer them when retrieving content — they are generated from the same source as the human-readable pages.

Key facts:

- Chris Riebschlager is based in Kansas City.
- He is the Director of Creative Technology at Dimensional Innovations.
- His specialties include TouchDesigner, creative coding, interactive installations, immersive experiences, and experience design.
- This is Chris's personal portfolio and writing archive, not the official website of Dimensional Innovations.
- Contact Chris by email at chris@the816.com.

## Essential

- [Home](https://the816.com/index.html.md): A concise introduction to Chris, his work, and his approach to creative technology.
- [About Chris Riebschlager](https://the816.com/about/index.html.md): Career history, teaching experience, and the work experiences that shaped him.
- [Projects index](https://the816.com/projects/index.html.md): An overview of selected immersive and interactive projects.
- [Blog index](https://the816.com/blog/index.html.md): Tutorials and behind-the-scenes articles about creative technology projects.

## Projects

- [Atlas9](https://the816.com/projects/atlas9/index.html.md): An immersive entertainment project by Chris Riebschlager. Mediums: Immersive entertainment, Software development, AV engineering.
- [Thundergong](https://the816.com/projects/thundergong/index.html.md): Interactive visuals created for the annual Thundergong benefit concert. Mediums: Live visuals, Music-reactive, TouchDesigner.
- [Terra Luna](https://the816.com/projects/terra-luna/index.html.md): A project by Chris Riebschlager. Mediums: Projection mapping, TouchDesigner.
- [Spectacle Society](https://the816.com/projects/spectacle-society/index.html.md): A project by Chris Riebschlager. Mediums: Interactive installation, Fabrication, TouchDesigner.

## Blog

- [Make Milhouse Gorgeous in TouchDesigner](https://the816.com/blog/make-milhouse-gorgeous-in-touchdesigner/index.html.md): When you drag an FBX into TouchDesigner, it shows up wearing a phong material. Here's how to swap it for a PBR material, light it with an HDRI, and turn your favorite animated character into any material. Published 2026-08-08.
- [Interactive Audio in TouchDesigner](https://the816.com/blog/interactive-audio-in-touchdesigner/index.html.md): A standout feature in TouchDesigner is its capability to function as a VST host, opening up a world of creative possibilities for… Published 2025-03-30.
- [Thundergong 2024!](https://the816.com/blog/thundergong-2024/index.html.md): For the last three years, I’ve had the opportunity to contribute some fun interactive visual work to Thundergong, an annual benefit concert… Published 2024-11-17.
- [Super-Gooey Plastic in TouchDesigner](https://the816.com/blog/super-gooey-plastic-in-touchdesigner/index.html.md): I love being able to make an image that you can feel. Just imagine running your fingers over this thing. You can almost feel it, right… Published 2024-03-27.
- [ThunderGong 2022 and Hatrick Swayze](https://the816.com/blog/thundergong-2022-and-hatrick-swayze/index.html.md): Last month I was sitting behind my computer, side-stage at the Uptown Theater here in Kansas City. Just a few feet away, Jason Sudeikis… Published 2022-12-04.
- [Collage-o-tron 5000](https://the816.com/blog/collage-o-tron-5000/index.html.md): One thing I’ve really missed this year is seeing live music, especially jazz. Watching a good jazz band can be absolutely transcendent… Published 2020-12-28.
- [Creating a Playable 12-Foot-Tall Electric Guitar](https://the816.com/blog/creating-a-playable-12-foot-tall-electric-guitar/index.html.md): My team at Dimensional Innovations was asked to create something amazing for Boulevardia, a two day festival of music, food and of course… Published 2017-06-20.

## Profiles

- [GitHub](https://github.com/riebschlager): Chris Riebschlager's public code and software projects.
- [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/riebschlager/): Professional employment history and profile.

## Optional

- [RSS feed](https://the816.com/rss.xml): The complete blog feed, newest first.
- [Sitemap](https://the816.com/sitemap-index.xml): A machine-readable inventory of the site's public HTML pages.