(^50) The Official Raspberry Pi Projects Book raspberrypi.org/magpi
Piet designed the paper in
Photoshop before printing
it to his exact specifications
The wiring is kept out of
view to add to the illusion
of the magic newspaper
The Raspberry Pi 7-inch screen
was the perfect size to act as
the lead headline photograph
hen Piet and Linda
Rullens took a trip to The
Wizarding World of Harry
Potter in Orlando, Florida, they
made sure to bring back a memory
card’s worth of holiday footage.
But what do you do with holiday
video footage once you’re home?
Taking his inspiration from the
fictional world that forged the
destination for their vacation, Piet
decided to create his own Daily
Prophet newspaper, complete with
moving images.
For those unfamiliar with Harry
Potter, the Daily Prophet is the
main newspaper publication of the
wizarding world - the only rival
being the often fantastical Quibbler
peddled by Luna Lovegood and her
father. Similar in function to that of
a ‘muggle’, non-magical newspaper,
the Daily Prophet shares the
headlines of the world – with one
major difference... the images move.
Imagine using an animated GIF in a
news blog, but on paper.
With his videos to hand, Piet set
about creating the newspaper by
designing the front cover in Adobe
Photoshop. Not only did this enable
him to include personal references
in the copy, such as mention of
himself and his wife being spotted
at the theme park, but it also
allowed him to create the perfect-
sized window for the Raspberry Pi
7-inch display that he was to fit
within the frame. “First, I designed
the whole poster in Photoshop.
Within the design, I marked an area
with the exact size of the Raspberry
Pi screen. Next, I plotted the poster
on normal paper at 100 percent, so
the marked area still matched the
Raspberry Pi screen.”
From there, Piet marked out the
measurements of the screen onto
the hardboard of a poster frame,
giving him a guide to cut through for
the additional electronics.
Luckily for Piet, on the other side
of the wall from where he would
be hanging the frame was a small
cupboard. He was able to drill
directly through the wall, hiding any
wires from view, and adding to the
magical illusion of the piece.
With on-board wireless
connectivity on the Pi, the only wire
needed was the USB power cable.
Projects SHOWCASE
When muggle newspapers simply weren’t engaging enough, Piet Rullens Jr
decided to create an animated fan build of the iconic Harry Potter tabloid
The Wizarding
World of Harry
Potter is in
Orlando, Florida
Piet took the
idea from the
moving tabloid
in the books
and movies
A hidden lead
keeps the
frame powered
and ready
for action
A sepia effect
gives the video
an added layer
of authenticity
Despite popular
belief, Neville
was the chosen
one, not Harry
Quick
Facts
HARRY POTTER &
THE DAILY PROPHET
W
PIET RULLENS JR
Engineer and business owner
by day; Daily Prophet reporter
Rita Skeeter by night.
magpi.cc/2qvNA8i