Wow, what a week!
A bunch of XR related news out this week: The XR Summit happened this week as part of the Games For Change Conference. Niantic announced that they’ve acquired Sensible Object; and in other Niantic news, would-be wizards now have their hands on Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, the AR game modeled after the very successful Pokémon Go, but with a lot more complexity, leaving some reviewers feeling overwhelmed already. Meanwhile, Variety got some more details around the upcoming Minecraft Earth and Fortune dug into the details of what it would take for mass adoption of VR. AIXR has announced the 2019 nominees for the 3rd annual VR Awards, dedicated to celebrating outstanding achievements in the VR industry, with some of NoPro’s faves in the mix, including but not limited to Vader Immortal, Wolves in the Walls, Ralph Breaks VR, Chained: A Victorian Nightmare, War Remains, and so many more.
As for us, we want to wish a hearty welcome to our new writers Danielle Look (Denver) and Patrick McClean (Chicago)! Check our their first reviews for us below. In addition to that, we’ve interviews from creators in NYC and Denver, review of an escape game/storytelling installation in Portland, Oregon and a multi-sensory musical theatre experience in LA, plus a bunch of Overlook Film Festival coverage, including multiple interviews with creators and Noah’s report on his experience there.
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ON THE PODCAST THIS WEEK
Continuing our 2019 Overlook Film Festival coverage, we sit down with two of the creators of the fest’s immersive offerings. First up isAva Lee Scott, the veteran immersive performer, who crafted Home of Enchantments — a piece that blew everyone who saw it away.
Then we check in with Andrew Preble of Delaport Ventures, the creator of Saintsbone, and the internationally known ‘Escape My Room’ in New Orleans.
That’s right: it’s a double feature show.
Advisory: some explicit language.
OUR GUIDE TO HOLLYWOOD FRINGE IMMERSIVE
FROM THE WIRE: SHOWS, EVENTS, & EXPERIENCES
Baltimore: Altar Ego
Boston: A Steampunk Party
Chicago: Focus Group, A Focus Group
Kansas City: Final Curtain
Miami: CURRENTS: TOPS
LA: Sockhop On Saturn; Good Burger Pop Up; The Severance Theory: Welcome to Respite
NYC: The Infinity Engine; Scapegoat; Privilege of Escape; Crushing Baby Animals; La Canción en la Tormenta; Carmen (Remount); Queerskins: A Love Story
Seattle: 7th and Jackson
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Submit your show to us here or at pitches@noproscenium.com.
OVERLOOK FILM FESTIVAL IMMERSIVE COVERAGE
Overlook 2019: Exploring The Immersive Track (A NoPro Adventure)Our founder hits the Big Easy to check out the horror film fest’s immersive offeringsnoproscenium.comThe Overlook Film Festival 2019 Immersive Creator Video Series (Part 1): Ava Lee ScottAn Interview with the creator of ‘Home of Enchantments’noproscenium.comThe Overlook 2019 Immersive Creator Video Series (Part 2): Andrew Preble, Escape My RoomAn interview with the creator of ‘Saintsbone’noproscenium.comNoPro Podcast Episode 203 — Overlook Double FeatureInterviews with Ava Lee Scott and Andrew Preblenoproscenium.com
REVIEWS
From No Proscenium:
A Wonderland Indeed with Upended Productions’ ‘Alice’ (Review)Going down the rabbit hole on the streets of Evanstonnoproscenium.comA Story Blooms at ‘Lloyd Gardens’ (Review)Something’s amiss at the Royal North Barrington Botanical Society, and it’s up to you to figure it outnoproscenium.comChaos and Complexity in Cold War-Themed ‘The Last Defender’ (Review)The interactive game where 16 players try to save the world lands in Denvernoproscenium.comPlaying With Our Senses in ‘The Last Five Years’ (The NoPro Review)Smell and taste take a turn onstage in the emotionally packed musicalnoproscenium.com
From David & Lisa Spira of Room Escape Artist:
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“Battle for Britain was fantastic blend of delightful, quirky design with an elegant but humble construction.”
“The world of ORIGENES was fun to explore. The set delivered its own aha moments as we reoriented ourselves as small beings in an oversized environment.”
STORIES
From NoProscenium.com and our Twitter feed:
Hearing the Audience with ‘The Listening School’ and ‘The Listeners’ (Q&A)A conversation with Ernesto Pujol about the upcoming interactive event seriesnoproscenium.comTravel Back to the ’90s With the All-Female ‘Giovanna’s’ (Q&A)A conversation with Denver Immersive Opera’s Corrine Dennynoproscenium.com‘Harry Potter: Wizards Unite’ to Launch This Week“Pokemon Go” maker Niantic is getting ready to launch its next big game: “ Harry Potter: Wizards Unite “ is set to…variety.comHarry Potter: Wizards Unite is the next step forward for augmented reality gamesBehind the sign-in desk and next to the Tardis, a Niantic employee peeks into small, ornate drawers - a wall of wooden…www.polygon.comThe makers of Pokémon Go just released a Harry Potter game that swaps monsters for magicRemember Pokémon Go? Like millions of other people, you probably at least tried the augmented reality mobile game back…www.vox.com'Harry Potter: Wizards Unite' is a poor wizard's 'Pokémon Go'Try not to get your wand in a knot, but Harry Potter: Wizards Unite is far from the magical experience we had been…mashable.comInside the Aquatic Advancements of Vacation Simulator, Out Tomorrow for PS VRGreetings, PS VR fans! I'm Graeme and I'm the Tech Director and All-Hat-Wearer at Owlchemy Labs. We're excited for…blog.us.playstation.comSpatial Computing Arrives - Broward College and Magic Leap Partner for New Program - The Broward…In the constant search to bring innovation and new technologies to the classroom, Broward College is partnering with…browardcollegeblog.comVirtual Vikings: how volumetric capture is making VR feel realThere's never been a better time to be a VR enthusiast. With the increased presence of standalone, wireless headsets…www.techradar.comVR games you need to start playing right awaySo, you're curious about VR? Maybe you finally got a headset for the first time. Now you need to know what to play…www.cnet.comThe Fall and Rise of VR: The Struggle to Make Virtual Reality Get RealPaul McCartney made his modest contribution to the future of virtual reality with a little help from a bike mechanic…fortune.comIntroducing The Nominees For The 2019 VR Awards - VRScoutShare TweetVR hardware is front and center at this year's festivities following the release of Oculus Quest and HP…vrscout.comDisney's New 'Lion King' Is the VR-Fueled Future of CinemaFor the 26 million people who watched Friends in the mid-'90s, Jon Favreau was Pete Becker. Not the star filmmaker who…www.wired.comVacation Simulator, Mars Alive, Four Other Titles Arrive On PSVR This Week - VRScoutShare TweetThis week is shaping up to be a busy one for console VR. While E3 2019 may officially be in the books, it…vrscout.comSensible Object is acquired by NianticAfter five years of building augmented reality games, I’m thrilled to announce that Sensible Object has been acquired…medium.comSave the Date: Oculus Connect Returns to San Jose McEnery Convention Center, September 25 - 26We're less than halfway through it, and 2019 is already shaping up to be a banner year for VR. The launch of Oculus…www.oculus.com'Minecraft Earth' AR Game Makes You Feel Like a Kid AgainThe success of "Pokémon Go" proved that augmented reality was a viable (and incredibly lucrative) option for mobile…variety.comMario Kart VR comes to Southern CaliforniaThe multiplayer VR experience runs on HTC Vive and can incorporate four players at a time. You'll be able to choose…www.engadget.comEqual Realities: Addressing the Gender Gap in VR - CalviumApp Insights Date Published: Virtual Reality (VR) is an industry that is still in its infancy. After the term was…calvium.comExclusive: Behind the scenes with Childish Gambino as he creates his psychedelic new AR appWhen I asked Donald Glover (the artist currently known as Childish Gambino) what his new song "Algorythm" was about and…www.fastcompany.comThe Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge experience - what is still to come? | blooloopBy Brady MacDonald Walt Disney Imagineering officials have hinted and intimated that the mingling droids, aliens…blooloop.com2020 New Frontier Sundance Film Festival - Sundance InstituteCreative Producing FAQ's Documentary Fund FAQ Film Music & Sound Design Lab FAQ 2020 Development Track FAQ 2019 Macon…apply.sundance.orgArtists are using virtual reality to convey the perils of climate changeClimate change is here but not everyone can feel the impact yet. Some artists are turning to virtual reality to help…qz.com
From David & Lisa Spira of Room Escape Artist:
“The 2019 Room Escape Conference is going to be in San Antonio, Texas August 6th, 7th, and 8th. Room Escape Artist will be giving a talk on The State of the Escape Room Industry on Thursday morning. We’ll also be a part of Tuesday’s safety panel.”
From Michael Andersen of ARGN:
“Starz’s new show The Rook has launched a mini puzzle trail built around the show’s universe, with a $5,000 prize to a random finisher.
The difficulty level ramps up quite a bit with Letter 6, so no one would blame you for checking the r/AnotherMagpie subreddit if you find yourself stuck.”
From Kent Bye of the Voices of VR podcast:
“Here’s my AWE keynote on the moral dilemmas of mixed reality, which expands my experiential design framework into a spatial ethical framework to help navigate the blurring of context that happens within immersive entertainment. Here are the slides and video of this talk, whick WIRED magazine’s Kevin Kelly says is enough material for many future seasons of Black Mirror.”
Slides:
Video:
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