I implemented a protocol used in filmmaking called "pre-viz" short for pre-visualization. A client who is paying $500,000 for a commercial that I design is entitled to see visual representation (frame by frame) of everything visual that happens in each scene of a 30 second commercial so that they are on the same page with my aesthetic choices (i.e; what the cast of characters looks like, what they're wearing, how the scene is balanced and lit, the direction of each action, the colors and mood of each scene) and so on. I imported this artful technique into the world of surgical reconstruction as I believe patients undergoing bodily reconstruction should have a visual reference of what they can expect for their own body prior to surgery.
Having gone through breast reconstruction inspired my innovation of BC Pre-vis; BC Pre-vis is important because it gives patients peace of mind, and puts the surgeon and the patient on the same page.*
The motivation behind BC Pre-vis was my own breast reconstruction. Even though I was fortunate to have an amazing reconstructive surgeon, some women aren't that lucky. So I used my own experience to subdue my own anxiety around the re-design of my body. Honestly, even I didn't know what I could expect for my own body. As a designer, I wanted more information and realized I wasn't going to get it presented like I would in my profession, as a pre-viz. That's why I created this service, in an "app-like" presentation to help me get through my own reconstruction and present my concerns professionally. Breast augmentation is one thing, but rebuilding the body from the inside out, that's a more complex surgery, more scars and more time to heal.
When I started working with women who were contemplating reconstruction, they didn't know what to ask for. They just wanted to get back to normal. They were still in shock about an amputation and would just default to the surgeon and hope for the best. Intellectual leverage plays a big part in a patients fear to ask for what they want. But when I show patients what they can expect for their own body prior to surgery - and not photos of a strangers body demonstrating a perfect before and after - they are wowwed. It becomes instantly real and that's the wow factor. The Pre-vis's that I create for patients is based on their surgeons directive and what the patient understands. They are not perfectly airbrushed Victoria Secret style images.
I am Marianne. I advocate for women with breast cancer and their right to know what they can expect for their own body prior to surgery.
