Big big big week here in Immersive-Land, folks. F8 happened and we finally got a launch date for the Oculus Quest (May 21); simultaneously, a bunch of reviews dropped on the untethered six degrees-of-freedom headset. Reservations for the brand new Star Wars-land AKA Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland in Anaheim, CA went online… and were gone in a flash. And, fittingly, New York Times spent a bunch of time with our friends over at Meow Wolf asking if they’ll be the new Disney. And Magic Leap released their Game of Thrones experience where participants can kill a White Walker, making it available to all ML1 users.
Plus: the Tribeca Film Festival’s ever popular Virtual Arcade in NYC continues through May 4 but tickets are already super, super sold out. The good news? If you’re not able to make it, you can view a ton of our coverage below or on our Tribeca hub and also on this week’s podcast episode. We’ve got reviews, interviews, and a look behind the scenes.
All that and more: below!
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ON THE PODCAST THIS WEEK
NoPro Executive Editor Kathryn Yu speaks to creators at the Tribeca Film Festival, exploring three different pieces currently showcasing at the Virtual Arcade through May 4.
She sits down with Kevin Cornish of Moth + Flame to talk about 2nd Civil War, where participants have the power to change the narrative of the VR film using a voice interface; they also go through an immersive theatre one-on-one with a performer before and after the VR experience. (Note: this interview took place in a busy cafe area.)
She also talks to Brandon Padveen, Associate Producer at MWM Immersive, about War Remains on the rooftop of Spring Studios; he discusses working with Dan Carlin of Hardcore History to create this “immersive memory” and designing the free roaming VR experience, which includes a large set, realistic props, wind effects, rumbling floors, and more. (Read her War Remains review.)
Then she chats with immersive creator and director of the Columbia University Digital Storytelling Lab Lance Weiler to talk about his latest project, Where There’s Smoke. The work is an immersive experience for four people exploring Lance’s relationship with his father (a former volunteer firefighter and hobbyist fire photographer), his father’s battle with cancer, and two mysterious fires that happened during Lance’s childhood. He describes the project as a non-linear documentary, an immersive theatre piece without performers, and an escape room without any escape. (Read her Where There’s Smoke review.)
MORE TRIBECA IMMERSIVE COVERAGE
Tribeca Immersive 2019 Diary, Part 1: Meeting LucyFable’s adaptation of ‘Wolves in the Walls’ for VR delights and charmsnoproscenium.comTribeca Immersive 2019 Diary, Part 2: The Kindness of StrangersInside Anagram’s powerful social experiment in virtual realitynoproscenium.comTribeca Immersive 2019 Diary, Part 3: Being In It and Of ItInside the visceral, shocking World War I experience ‘War Remains’noproscenium.comTribeca Immersive 2019 Diary, Part 4: Trust No OnePilot Theatre’s ‘Traitor’ creates an immersive thrill ride for twonoproscenium.comTribeca Immersive 2019 Diary, Part 5: Come Gather Around The ‘Bonfire’Baobab Studios’ latest mixes high quality animation, memorable characters, and interactivitynoproscenium.comTribeca Immersive 2019 Diary, Part 6: The Things That Survived The FireLance Weiler’s beautiful, unforgettable ‘Where There’s Smoke’ brings a documentary to lifenoproscenium.comUnlocking the Mystery of ‘The Key’ (Q&A)A conversation with creator Celine Tricartnoproscenium.comTravel Alongside Asylum Seekers in VR with ‘Another Dream’ (Q&A)An interview with director/creator Tamara Shogaolunoproscenium.com
OUR GUIDE TO HOLLYWOOD FRINGE IMMERSIVE
NYC: SAVE THE DATE!
FROM THE WIRE: SHOWS, EVENTS, & EXPERIENCES
Houston: FOMO Factory
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REVIEWS
From No Proscenium:
The Woolgatherers’ ‘Romeo & Juliet’ Spoils Its Own Party (Review)An interactive version of the Shakespearean classic falls flatnoproscenium.com‘Painted Alice’ Gets Lost in Wonderland (Review)This grown-up musical retelling of the classic lacks color and claritynoproscenium.com
From David & Lisa Spira of Room Escape Artist:
“We interviewed two DC area escape room players about their experience playing an escape room on a cruise ship: Puzzle Break’s Escape The Rubicon on Royal Caribbean’s Harmony of the Seas:”
“The finest immersive experience that we encountered in St. Louis wasn’t an escape room; it was City Museum. We wrote about our experience exploring this adventure playground.”
STORIES
From NoProscenium.com and our Twitter feed:
Oculus Quest review: Facebook's new VR headset is the best thing I've tried this yearEverywhere I've been over the last week and a half, it's been the same: entering mysterious worlds via kitchens, or…www.cnet.comOculus Rift S Review - A Good Choice for VR Newcomers, a Difficult Choice for VR VetsAfter an impressive three-year tour of duty for Oculus' first PC VR headset, the Rift, along comes the Rift S. Oculus…www.roadtovr.comFirst look at Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge in Play Disney Parks appWe've gotten our first glimpse at the Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge gameboards added to the Play Disney Parks app, which…attractionsmagazine.comOculus Quest review: A new milestone for VREvery product here is independently selected by Mashable journalists. If you buy something featured, we may earn an…mashable.comPrinciples of gaming sound design in interactive and immersive theatre - Ludo 2019Presented at the Ludo 2019, The Ludomusicology Videogame Music Research Group's European Conference. Abstract Within…laharrisonmusic.co.ukXRDC | Call for SubmissionsVendor-Specific Proposals XRDC does not accept product, service, or vendor-related submissions. If a submission is a…www.xrdconf.com
From David & Lisa Spira of Room Escape Artist:
“We’re excited about two Kickstarters this week! There is less than a week left to support the remount of The Nest. We interviewed the creators this week.”
“Artist Risa Puna just launched her Kickstarter for creating The Privilege of Escape with Creative Time, a New York based arts non-profit. Her project is an escape room using puzzles to examine issues surrounding social dynamics:”
From Laura E. Hall of Timberview Productions:
“I’m writing a series of article on escape rooms on TV and in film, looking at their role in culture, breaking them down into puzzle and game flow, and examining how successful (or not) they are:”
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