Five Storytelling projects announced as part of the 2020 CreativeXR Cohort
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StoryFutures Academy are supporting CreativeXR as Storytelling Partner, with 5 Storytelling projects announced as part of the 20 selected companies for the CreativeXR 2020 cohort.
CreativeXR, the programme from Digital Catapult and Arts Council England to support the creation of new cultural experiences using immersive technology. A record 260 teams applied to join CreativeXR’s third round which asked applicants to come up with original immersive ideas, in particular those which would respond to the restrictions in place as a result of Covid-19. The 20 selected teams based across the UK will begin the programme remotely in July.
StoryFutures Academy is partnering with CreativeXR to bring narrative storytelling expertise, and will mentor five companies in story development, design and continuing narrative through a number of workshops and masterclasses.
Started in 2017 by Digital Catapult and Arts Council England, CreativeXR encourages teams to test the boundaries of how immersive technology can be used and experienced. The annual programme offers teams the freedom to realise new forms of art, storytelling and entertainment using content delivered through virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), haptics (technology which simulates the experience of touch) or audio-based technologies. Each team receives £20,000 in funding each alongside intensive mentoring and technical support to create a prototype.
As in previous rounds, this year’s projects incorporate a diverse selection of technologies with a range of cultural disciplines, including dance, music and documentary filmmaking. CreativeXR’s third round will culminate in November with a virtual Showcase event, allowing teams to secure further investment and commissions in order to make their experience accessible to the public.
CreativeXR 2020 will seek to replicate the success of its first two years, which saw teams secure over £2.7m in investment, garner critical acclaim at Tribeca Film Festival, and partner with top cultural institutions on content which they would be unable to develop independently.
The five projects Storytelling selected to join CreativeXR 2020 are:
• A Place to Be by Independent Film Trust - A 360 ̊ VR experience set in a South London shebeen
• Child of Empire by Project Dastaan - An interactive VR docufiction based on the 1947 Partition of India and Pakistan
• #CorpTopia by Kimeleon.tv - An AR multiplayer game set in a parallel world of human-animal species
• (Hi)story of a Painting by Gaëlle Mourre and Quentin Darras - An educational series which builds storyworlds around iconic works of art
• The Foundling by Raucous - A tabletop theatre show combining fairytale and fact, designed as a prequel to a live immersive theatre experience
Find out more about CreativeXR: https://creativexr.co.uk/
