The APOGEE English Press met with Vedant Vyas, the CoStAAn of the Department of Visual Media (DVM), for a discussion about their contribution towards the fest. 

Vedant explained that DVM is primarily responsible for developing the official app and website for the fest, along with the official curtain raisers, theme reveal videos, promotional videos, and portals that streamline the fest’s operations across various departments. Talking about the theme — “A Celestial Epiphany” — Vyas elucidated that it had been derived from collective inputs from the CoStAA to commemorate the successful launch of Chandrayaan-3 In addition, they introduced an official mascot named “LAPS-E” (Leading Artificial Programmable System), inspired by the popular 2008 Pixar film “WALL-E”.

Vedant shared that DVM is also planning on introducing a new ‘Signings Portal’, which will replace the conventional process of filling out a Google form during mess signings. ‘This would simplify the compilation of event sign-ups[sic] data as the entire data is centralized. Furthermore, this addresses the issue of tampering and fake signings as the user can directly track the events they wish to sign up for,’ Vyas explained. He mentioned that the team has also tried to incorporate various features in the portals used by other departments, such as ReccNAcc and Firewallz, to tackle the issues faced by them in previous fests. 

Vyas shared that the extensive work undertaken by DVM commenced as early as August, presenting a significant challenge of burnout among the team, particularly for the overwhelmed juniors.  

Vyas explained how most students prefer to go back home during APOGEE as the prospect of a technical fest does not appeal to everyone. ‘However, this year the CoStAA has tried to incorporate a diverse range of activities to increase footfall,’ he added as the concluding remark.