Thread by @kentbye

I got an overview of XR at #SXSW 2022 including the XR Competition & Spotlight program from lead programmer @jblakeneyk + special XR music events in @VRChat worlds.
I'll be @sxsw Mar 11-16 serving on the XR Jury.
Reply below with XR events I didn't mention
voicesofvr.com/1059-overview-…

2/ Breonna’s Garden VR installation will be available remotely in @AltspaceVR starting March 12th at 10am CST until March 15th at 6pm CDT.
Use AltSpaceVR Hub event Code: JJI844
More details: mailchi.mp/4979ee9a6b46/b…

I added to the list of #SXSW XR events:
voicesofvr.com/1059-overview-…

3/ I'm really looking forward to finally getting a chance to see @miro_shot's mixed reality, live music performance titled SIMLUACRA on Monday night at #SXSW at the @hideouttheatre.

4/ 18 of the 33 XR experiences featured in #SXSW's Competition & Spotlight will be available remotely via the new @Vast_World_XR.
Requires PCVR with both SteamVR & Oculus installed (no support for Index)
File Download Size will be 62.9 GB once it's live:

5/ I forgot my power chord for my PC (200W), and so I will unfortunately not be able to check out the @Vast_World_XR online while at SXSW. But folks should be able to download the client now at sxsw.vast.world/#download.

It does require PCVR + SteamVR + Oculus to run.

6/ #SXSW tip for finding #XR-related events.
In SXSW Go app:
Search for “Metaverse” to find an panel & click on it.
Go to categories, then you can favorite all Connecting with XR Summit (22), XR (88), Metaverse (60), Immersive (74) sessions.
Now click on My Schedule to see all XR

7/ I got to see all but a half hours worth of the #SXSW pieces not in competition yesterday.
I will get to see the remaining 8 out of 12 pieces in competition today.
I’ll give some highlights here, & hope to do a more complete thread here after I get to see everything.

8/ For folks trying to catch the remote #SXSW XR experiences available via @Vast_World_XR, the 60+ GB download will all 18 available experiences is now available at SXSW.vast.world.
Don’t miss the introductory primer from @kathrynyu & the @NoProscenium team below 👇

9/ Note that all of 35 of the #SXSW #XR immersive experiences are on the 3rd floor of the Fairmont hotel in the Congressional Ballroom.
It is only open for 3 days IRL from 11a-6p Sun to Tues, March 13-15.

See this Voices of VR ep for an overview + links:
voicesofvr.com/1059-overview-…

10/ Now for some #SXSW XR highlights for what I have been able to see so far.

One of the coolest booth designs was from @weareanagram for GOLIATH: PLAYING WITH REALITY.

You can already see it on the Quest via Oculus & here’s my previous interview w them:
voicesofvr.com/1003-a-power-i…

11/ One of the coolest experiences I saw was @vmorisset + @direphi’s COMPOSITIONS [6m] which is a mixed reality interactive music composition tool that transcends the linear sequencer paradigm & mixes up some radial projection mapped UX that’s always novel

12/ RADIO GHOST drives you to a Austin mall for an immersive theater, guided audio walk that will change my experience of malls forever.
Only 30 ppl will see this as it’s 2+ hrs.
RSVP for a wait list time & just show up at the time to try & catch it #sxsw
eventbrite.co.uk/e/radio-ghost-…

13/ FURURE RITES was one of the more technologically innovative prototype demos that I saw with a live motion captured dancer being live-streamed into a Quest with multiple mirrored embodiments including my own. Still early, but cool to see the collab with professional dancers:

14/ About to head out to try to catch the rest of the #SXSW XR program.
Here is a link to the floor plan if you’re trying to get oriented.
sxsw-xr-22.expofp.com

15/ Here’s my #SXSW cheat sheet with run times listed.
Generally, the longer the experience, then the harder it is to see.
Competition on the left and Non-Competition on the right.
This should help prioritize what to sign up for and what to wait for.

16/ Also, here’s a list of the 18 experiences that will be available remotely via @Vast_World_XR from March 12-20th.
So if you’re at the physical #SXSW, then definitely prioritize the ones that you won’t be able to see otherwise if you’re planning to catch the rest at home.

17/ I've seen all of the XR experiences at #SXSW now and I'm going to give some quick impressions over the next couple of days. I won't have time to finish this thread before my day starts, but I get as far as I can.
Lots of creative XR industry meet up last night for 1st time.

18/ Don't miss @CelineTricart's #SXSW Keynote today at 1p CDT talking about Immersive Storytelling & LARPing.
schedule.sxsw.com/2022/events/PP…

Voices of VR interview on SUN LADIES
voicesofvr.com/622-the-making…

Also on THE KEY, which won both Tribeca & Venice 2019
voicesofvr.com/821-dreams-sym…

19/ GUMBALL DREAMS [60m] adapted a @VRChat puzzle world into an immersive theater piece by @Ferryman_VR. Lots of great shader effects to amplify story performed by one "ractor" playing multiple parts. Some interesting experiments with 1:1 interactions that work well in VR. #SXSW

20/ BLACK ICE VR is a sci-fi horror narrative about the ethics of memory erasure in a toon-shaded Noir aesthetic. Had lots of interesting experimentations with interactivity in their experience to augment & embody the narrative + some haunting, glitch lighting effects.

21/ CHOCTAW CODE TALKERS 1918 [3m] uncovers how the first cryptological use of Native American languages actually happened in WWI & not WWII. Juxtaposes 360 video with Depth-Kit like volumetric characters to tell this short story.

22/ (Hi)story of a Painting: The Light in the Shadow (15m) is Episode 2 of a series that uses VR to tell the spatial story of art history & transport you into the historical context of Baroque artist Artemisia Gentileschi, who was a badass feminist well ahead of her time.

23/ Ihyangjeong: Carving with Memories (16m) is a meditation on the Korean concept of the relationship between objects & memory taking you on a very personal journey into place and identity. Lots of stylized Quill art aesthetics & a variety of spatial storytelling conceits.

24/ Komez Alef O (18m) is by a daughter of a Holocaust survivor who tells the refugee story of her father by translating his oral history into a series of still life spatial scenes you journey through. It's a 360 video, but produced with high-res renders from Unreal Engine.

25/ Lustration VR (15-30m) is an animated story where you can control different camera angles to track how multiple realities collide. It has a very distinct art style & both pushes the limits of & is sometimes constrained by Quill. Very provocative story idea & world building.

26/ Megan Thee Stallion: Enter Thee Hottieverse (14m) is a music video featuring a volumetric capture of a @theestallion song + dance routine w mo-capped backup dancers seamlessly seamlessly integrated into an immersive experience & epic environment. Had interactive game chapter.

27/ ON THE MORNING YOU WAKE (TO THE END OF THE WORLD) ep #2 & 3 premiered at #sxsw. It translates the abstract concept of nuclear annihilation into an embodied context & refines the grammar of spatial storytelling.

Prev interview:
voicesofvr.com/1047-translati…

28/ PARADISE (30m) is a collaboration between @darkfield_org & Gabo Arora that uses the visceral medium of spatial audio to explore topics of violence that may be difficult to explore in other media.
Intended for partnered couples & blends documentary, narrative, & interactive AI

29/ Red Antz VR is an interactive & indie music video where you place ants on your body to remix music stems of experimental punk band Palberta. Short & sweet, but also surprisingly immersive, fun, & very charming.

30/ WEIRD TIMES is an episodic series that explores teenage mental health issues by creating embodied metaphors of Depression & ADHD. Aiming to be used in schools to help break through mental health taboos & facilitate conversations.

31/ Watched @CelineTricart's #SXSW Keynote explored immersive storytelling through her experiences of writing, film, cinematic VR, 6DoF interactive VR, Live Action Role Play / LARPs, & NFT Blockchain storytelling.

See my 2 Voices of VR interviews w/ her👇

32/ About to watch the US debut of @miro_shot’s SIMULCRA at #SXSW, a concert taking “place simultaneously in reality & virtual worlds.”
Excited to see how they’re merging mixed reality passthrough w live music.

A number of shows at tonight at the Hideout Theatre at 617 Congress.

33/ @miro_shot #SXSW performance was a 8m demo. Visually it cut back & forth between a monoscopic GearVR Mixed Reality passthrough of B&W edge detection shader with different virtual world scenes.
Interesting to hear & feel live music.
Lots of wonky VR logistics to pull this off

34/ The XR Jury at #SXSW gave (HI)STORY OF A PAINTING a special jury recognition for Immersive Storytelling. It’s a really solid piece that fuses together the grammar of spatial narrative in a really effective manner.

35/ ON THE MORNING YOU WAKE (TO THE END OF THE WORLD) is such a great piece on so many fronts.
So glad that it will be coming out March 24th for the world to see.
Here’s our XR Jury statement about it.

36/ I ended up doing 18 Voices of VR interviews at #SXSW for ~14 hours of oral history & insights into the frontiers of immersive storytelling
(Photo by @echeng).
I very much enjoyed serving in the XR Jury & seeing all of the work.
I’ll finish up this thread once I get home.

37/ One of my favorite experiences from this year's #SXSW XR was COMPOSITION (6m). It combines the physicality of moving blocks on a table with reactive projection mapped + music sonification. Such a magical experience to play with that delightfully filled me with awe & wonder.

38/ THE CHOICE (25m) is a spatial doc that tells the story of how the rollback of productive rights in Texas personally impacted a woman's planned pregnancy that put her life in danger. A very timely exploration, unfortunately. Uses custom stereoscopic workflow that looks great.

39/ LIMINAL LANDS (18m) fuses fine arts with environmental conservation by taking a scalar journey through magical organisms found within a wetlands ecosystem. Lots of photogrammetry of objects arranged in a spatial story with soundscape & projected shaders reactive to movements.

40/ GREEN PLANET AR (7m) is a powerful execution of AR storytelling. David Attenborough takes you on a tour of a forest biome in this BBC series activation. Guides you to ~8 waypoints directing your attn & uses modal windows to keep focus on whatever object is being discussed.

41/ GENESIS (13m) is a really amazing animated journey across a huge swath of time. I really enjoyed this one, & here's my first impressions of it from Venice 2021:

42/ PAPER BIRDS (30m) is another masterful execution of tabletop spatial storytelling by @3darStudios, the creators of GLOOMY EYES. Here's my first impression of the first time I saw the full series at Tribeca 2021:

43/ SURVIVING 9/11: 27 UNDER THE RUBBLE doc brilliantly blends different techniques to tell the story of a 9/11 survivor.
Ch 1 transforms '90s NYC panoramic photos into stereoscopic scenes.
Ch 2 uses CGI to show memories inside towers.
Ch 3 3D 360 video of 9/11 memorial journey.

44/ BREONNA'S GARDEN (15m) VR experience in @AltspaceVR shows a photogrammetry capture of her family's memorial room, then navigate a virtual tulip garden to hear audio testimonials from friends & family. Powerful.
Previous @yesladypheOnix interview on AR

45/ BEAT DAY: THE BEGINNING - MINI VR CONCERT (10m) from HTC showed off @htcvive's concert platform using giant volumetric capture performance of a band with 4 members. Still a bit buggy with unorthodox locomotion controls. Something in the gestalt that didn't fully gel for me.

46/ MADAME PIRATE: BECOMING A LEGEND (17m) tells the story of Cheng I Sao, a woman who escaped forced prostitution to eventually become the head of a pirate fleet. Lots of theatrical staging in this story that juxtaposes 180 3D video scenes with scenes of VR illustration.

47/ LIPs (7m) is an "immersive journey of eroticism" & exploration of feminine sexuality. Float through a series of scaled up models of women's bodies creating a "sexual landscape" with AMSR that aims to arouse a "neurotic orgasm, liberated by multi-dimensional & undefined eros."

48/ My impressions of THE SICK ROSE (17m) from Venice 2021. I remember how distinct the stop-motion aesthetic is within VR:

49/ GOLIATH: PLAYING WITH REALITY (25m) is a really well-told immersive story.

I previously interviewed the creators at @weareanagram here: voicesofvr.com/1003-a-power-i…

It won a bunch of @xrmust awards, but also the top prize at #VeniceVRExpanded 2021. See:

50/ MINIMUM MASS (20m) first showed back in 2020, and explores the the topic of grief around miscarriage.

Here's my previous interview with the creators: voicesofvr.com/922-lighting-e…

51/ The 24-hour durational experience GONDWANA also showed at SXSW.

Here's my previous Voices of VR interview with the @gondwanavr team:
voicesofvr.com/1046-a-24-hour…

My first impressions from Sundance 2022:

52/ PERSUASION MACHINES (12m) is an immersive piece visualizing data streams of surveillance capitalism.

I dive deep into privacy in my interview write-up:
voicesofvr.com/892-sundance-p…

They ported it to the Quest for #SXSW after it's Sundance 2020 premiere:

53/ PROTOTYPE: ACORN (2m) was a demo of an AR app that gave a spatial time lapse of an acorn growing into a tree. A super effective use of AR to help provide a metaphoric X-ray into natural processes. Inspired by & based upon a BBC film called THE PROMISE.
thepromise.earth

54/ PROTOTYPE: ALONE TOGETHER (5m) was an early iteration demo of interacting with an AI virtual being in the context of you being hired as a fake family member.
A bit too open-ended for me needing some better context-setting guardrails for your character & the broader story.

55/ PROTOTYPE: GLOAMING (9m) was a brief demo of a much larger interactive dance & theatre performance where you're guided by a motion-captured dancer doing a live performance.
Uses remote rendering technologies to have a higher res experience on the Quest, but also via a Browser

56/ PROTOTYPE: FUTURE RITES (11m) Phase 2 exploration of live perf. Dancers are not tracked in 6DoF & so mirrored movements are spatially locked giving it a more robotic & pre-recorded vibe.
Phase 1 was "Dance Autoune" AI experiments.
A promising start.

57/ PROTOTYPE: RADIO GHOST (70m) was one of my highlights from #SXSW. It's a site-specific (a mall) immersive theatre audio experience deconstructing hidden harms in unethical consumption. Experiments with thresholds, music, pacing, interactivity, & story.

58/ There was a really hypnotic art installation of a LIDAR time-lapse by @ScanLABProjects showing at #sxsw.
Really quite compelling to see different time scales of hours, days, weeks, months, & year.
More in an interview coming soon.