In September of last year, I already spoke about virtual reality festivals. Since I published that post, I have observed how there are more and more virtual reality documentary festivals, a segment where VR and immersive cinema are developing significantly.
New virtual reality and interactive cinema technologies can have a long way to go in the documentary field and open up new possibilities, both at a narrative level and in the creation of new experiences. We are facing a new way of confronting reality, and there are some festivals that are already setting trends, hosting new initiatives, both in exhibition and in project development.
There are festivals that, despite not being specialized in documentary film, are at the forefront of new technologies; cases such as the Guanajuato Film Festival and Tribeca, which have jointly promoted a project for the production of virtual reality documentaries by Latin American filmmakers, are a clear example of innovation.
In this post, I have selected four virtual reality documentary festivals that are taking the initiative, creating new spaces for VR and allowing us to take a brief snapshot of the situation surrounding virtual reality and documentary film.
Sheffield DocFest
The Sheffield Festival, which will take place from June 9 to 14, has a specific section called Alternate Realities; in 2016, 12 documentaries made in virtual reality were screened.
It also features two other spaces: the Virtual Reality Arcade, with the screening of different experiences surrounding virtual reality, programmed by Site Gallery, and the Alternate Realities Summit, where several conferences on new narratives and the technological aspects of VR take place over the course of a day. Last year, they featured creators such as Jessica Brillhart and Jane Gauntlett, as well as curators and researchers like Bruce Duncan.
In addition to the screenings and conferences, they have a space dedicated to the incipient VR market; the Alternative Realities Market is one of the first in its category, as it specializes in virtual reality documentary projects.
Usually, 25 projects are selected, which receive support from professionals and experts to help with their development and the search for financing. Up to two projects per production company can be selected, and it is not necessary for them to have a percentage of their financing secured. There is a small registration fee for projects.
The deadline is now closed, as the full program for this year is pending publication, but if you have virtual reality documentary projects in development, take good note of the dates for this market.
IDFA
The Amsterdam International Documentary Film Festival, which will take place from November 15 to 26, is another major event betting on new technologies. The DocLab section is the one that groups these new narratives around documentaries. The DocLab Immersive Network is the space dedicated to virtual reality.
In the same vein as Sheffield, it features the Immersive Network Summit, a space dedicated to reflection and debate regarding the development of new narratives and technologies. Furthermore, in the Immersive Network Research & Beta Lab, special assistance is provided for project development, with the support of the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences.
Activities surrounding virtual reality are completed with the Immersive Knowledge Base, a space dedicated to discovering the most innovative proposals.
CPH:DOX
The Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival is also making a very strong commitment to virtual reality, with a new space dedicated to interactive cinema and VR called Inter:active & VR:Cinema, which has become the most important in Denmark.
In this space, five new interactive works have been presented, along with up to three programs featuring works developed in virtual reality, with a programming concept very consistent with the festival’s trajectory.
The three programs dedicated to virtual reality have been VR:ART, exploring the creative possibilities of virtual reality; VR:IMPACT, with documentaries closer to social reality and social conflicts; and finally, VR:SCIENCE, with documentaries dedicated to scientific experiences. The festival concluded on March 26.
Visions du Réel
In the case of the Nyon International Film Festival, which ended on April 23, the presence of virtual reality is more limited than in the previous ones. In this case, VR is concentrated in the Interactive Documentary Workshop.
This is a workshop in which different case studies are analyzed, with a duration of 5 days oriented toward project creation. On the festival website, it is possible to download this year’s program and the 12 projects that have been developed during these workshops.
These sections are very recent, and we will surely see more festivals hosting new spaces dedicated to virtual reality.
Innovation processes in VR narrative are in full swing, and it forces us to stay very alert.