Tribeca Film Festival unveils immersive programme of VR, AR, mixed reality

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Ayahuasca

Source: Tribeca Film Festival / Thomas Eid

Ayahuasca

Tribeca Film Festival brass on Wednesday (6) unveiled the 2019 immersive programme of more than 30 VR, AR, and mixed reality films and experiences.

New work includes Baobab Studios’ Bonfire created by the Madagascar series and Antz director Eric Darnell and featuring Ali Wong; Wolves In The Walls: It’s All Over includes Jeffrey Wright and Noah Schnapp from Stranger Things; and Immersive experiences including Into The Light featuring musician Yo-Yo Ma, and Ayahuasca (pictured) created by Jan Kounen.

Tribeca Immersive includes two events, the Virtual Arcade featuring Storyscapes, and Tribeca Cinema360, running from April 24-May 4. On Tuesday Tribeca Film Festival announced its feature slate. The entire festival runs from April 24-May 5.

“Tribeca Immersive remains committed to the power of new technology as a dynamic vehicle for storytelling,” said Loren Hammonds, senior programmer, film & immersive for Tribeca Film Festival. “This year’s programming spans a myriad of genres, including many world premiere VR, MR and AR experiences.”

The immersive works address topics like gun control (12 Seconds Of Gunfire: The True Story Of A School Shooting), the environment (A Drop in the Ocean), and persecution of the LGBTQIA community (Another Dream).

At this year’s Virtual Arcade, the Storyscapes juried selections present new trends and innovative work across mediums that invite audience participation. The Storyscapes Award presented by AT&T recognises artists who bridge the gap between technology and storytelling. This year, female creators made four of the five experiences in contention.

“It has been a wild ride seeing how artists and filmmakers have responded to new technologies over the years, constantly pushing and prodding and exploring the edges of things in order to make beautiful and vital work,” said Ingrid Kopp, co-curator of Tribeca Immersive.