The StoryFutures Academy Podcast

Welcome to the new StoryFutures Academy podcast.This 8-part series, hosted by immersive director Shehani Fernando, gives listeners a practical look at how VR and AR productions actually get made. If you want to begin creating your own immersive stories or learn more about the XR sector, this is the podcast for you. With the help of some of the biggest names in the industry, she explores practical tips, case studies and the challenges that make this a really exciting area to work in.

This week, we look at how to take your first tentative steps into making immersive content and thinking spatially. But where do you begin? Do you jump into a game engine, or go up into the loft to find your old lego? To help us decide, we’ve enlisted the help of Kim-Leigh Pontin, Creative Director at Nexus Studios and Verity McIntosh, Senior Lecturer in Virtual and Extended Realities at the University of the West of England.Presenter: Shehani Fernando, Producers: Chris Hogg & Shehani Fernando, Assistant Producer: Max Bower,Executive Producer: Will Saunders, Editing and sound design: John Wakefield & Matt McGuinness, The title track is: ‘A Thousand Years’ by  David A Molina, Additional music: Neil CullenOther clips from our introductory montage courtesy of The Guardian, NASA, Common GroundWith thanks to Sky for permission to use a clip from 'Discovery of Witches - Hiding in Plain Sight VR' and Ellie Richold for the 'Virtual Love Islands' clipRESOURCESVirtual Love Islands VR Piece: https://www.ellierichold.co.uk/arvrNexus Studios: https://nexusstudios.com/Discovery of Witches VR Piece: https://www.oculus.com/experiences/rift/942242895886564/?locale=en_GBBritannia VR Piece: https://www.oculus.com/experiences/rift/2084154688334944/?locale=en_GBTilt Brush: https://www.tiltbrush.com/Quill: https://quill.fb.com/Unity: https://unity.com/Unreal: https://www.unrealengine.com/en-US/Medium (sculpting tool in VR) - https://www.oculus.com/medium/?locale=en_GB

With the worldwide value of the Augmented Reality market set to exceed $50 billion by 2024, our guests this week help us to understand what forces are driving this dramatic growth, and what opportunities there are for immersive storytellers like yourself. We begin with Alex Fleetwood, Head of Niantic's London Studios, the company behind Harry Potter’s Wizard’s Unite and the worldwide phenomenon that is Pokémon Go. We’re also joined by Susan Cummings and Taavi Kelle who are going to take us on an AR adventure with Wallace and Gromit.With Alex Fleetwood from Niantic, and Susan Cummings and Taavi Kelle, from Fictioneers.Alex Fleetwood, Head of Niantic's London studio - https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexfleetwood/Susan Cummings, Fictioneers - https://www.linkedin.com/in/susanicummings/Taavi Kelle, Fictioneers - https://www.linkedin.com/in/taavikelle/Presenter: Shehani FernandoProducers: Chris Hogg & Shehani Fernando Assistant Producer: Max BowerExecutive Producer: Will Saunders Editing and sound design: John Wakefield & Matt McGuinness The title track is: ‘A Thousand Years’ by David A Molina Additional music: Neil Cullen & 'Time to Leave' by Ketsa, courtesy of the Free Music ArchiveResources:Niantic: https://nianticlabs.com/en/ @nianticLabsPokémon Go: https://pokemongolive.com/en/ @pokemongoappPokéman Go Fest https://pokemongolive.com/en/events/fest/2020/Tiny Rebel Games: https://www.tinyrebelgames.com/ @tinyrebelgamesFictioneers www.fictioneers.co.uk @fictioneersLtdThe Big Fix Up: https://www.thebigfixup.co.uk/ @thebigfixupBeasts of Balance: https://beastsofbalance.com/ @beastsofbalanceSpark AR - https://sparkar.facebook.com/ar-studio/Snapchat Lens Studio - https://lensstudio.snapchat.com/Niantic's Real World Platform - https://nianticlabs.com/en/blog/nrwp-update-110619/Niantic's Creator Platform - https://niantic.dev/ Thanks:Special thanks to Fictioneers, Aardman Animations and Niantic for the use of audio clips in this episode.

An immersive producer is a key role in any XR project - so what does it take to become one yourself?  What are the nuts and bolts of delivering a project to budget, and what technical knowledge do you need to be able to translate what clients want to developers? This week we have two guests that have worked on some ground-breaking immersive projects, Katie Grayson from Passion Experience, and executive producer Zillah Watson. Both of them share their top tips on the different phases of production and discuss the making of the BBC’s Emmy-nominated ‘Dr Who: The Runaway’.Zillah Watson, Executive Producerhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/zillahwatson/Katie Grayson, Passion Pictureshttps://www.linkedin.com/in/katie-grayson-42b8447/Credits:Presenter: Shehani Fernando Producers: Chris Hogg & Shehani Fernando Assistant Producer: Max BowerExecutive Producer: Will SaundersEditing and sound design: John Wakefield & Matt McGuinness The title track is: ‘A Thousand Years’ by David A MolinaAdditional music: Neil CullenThanks:Clips from Congo VR and Dr Who: The Runaway, courtesy of the BBCClip from Critical Distance courtesy of Vision 3Thanks to Satore Studios for use of the Swan AR clipResources:Passion Pictures - http://www.passion-pictures.com/experience/  @passionpicturesBBC’s Congo VR Piece: https://canvas-story.bbcrewind.co.uk/congo-vr/ Dr Who: The Runaway: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RPe6aNiotAHololens 2: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/hololens/buyCritical Distance: https://www.vision3.tv/VR-3D-projects/post.php?permalink=critical-distanceSatore Studios: https://satorestudio.com/ @satorestudioGuide to virtual production: https://www.unrealengine.com/en-US/virtual-production

This week, we're talking about the role of writers in immersive storytelling. Some of the biggest IP on the planet is beginning to wake up to the possibilities that virtual reality can offer. In the last few years, Star Wars and Doctor Who have launched VR experiences for the Oculus Quest. Writers are going to have an increasingly important role in the creation of new character-led experiences. This episode brings together the sage voices of Adam Ganz, Head of the Writer's Room at the StoryFutures Academy, Kerry Kolbe a TV writer who is making the leap into writing for VR, and finally Russ Harding, the man entrusted by the producers of Peaky Blinders to bring the world of 1920's Birmingham onto a headset near you.Presenter: Shehani Fernando, Producers: Chris Hogg & Shehani Fernando, Assistant Producer: Max Bower,Executive Producer: Will Saunders, Editing and sound design: John Wakefield & Matt McGuinness, The title track is: ‘A Thousand Years’ by David A Molina, Additional music: Neil Cullen & ‘Algea Tender’ by Blue Dot Sessions courtesy of the Free Music ArchiveSpecial Thanks:Peaky Blinders Clip provided courtesy of Caryn Mandabach Productions www.peakyblinders.tvSFA Writer’s Room: https://www.storyfutures.com/academy/experiment/writers-roomPeaky Blinders: https://peakyblinders.tvMaze Theory: https://www.maze-theory.com/projectsSun Ladies VR Piece: https://www.luciddreamsprod.com/#video2Punchdrunk: https://www.punchdrunk.org.uk/Playstation VR Worlds: https://www.playstation.com/en-gb/games/playstation-vr-worlds/

Whether the first immersive experience you are making is for people in their living rooms or launching at a museum, understanding how your story is going to be experienced and who you're going to target is a huge question that should be dealt with upfront rather than after you've built it. This week we enlist the help of Catherine Allen from Limina Immersive, Executive Producer, Zillah Watson and our own Dr Laryssa Whittaker from StoryFutures to find out exactly what questions you should be asking your audience and how to attract more people to your content.Dr. Laryssa Whittaker, Research Fellow, StoryFutures https://www.linkedin.com/in/laryssa-whittaker-09499034/Catherine Allen, CEO, Limina Immersivehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/catherinedjallen/Zillah Watson, Executive Producerhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/zillahwatson/Credits:Presenter: Shehani FernandoProducers: Chris Hogg & Shehani Fernando Assistant Producer: Max BowerExecutive Producer: Will SaundersEditing and sound design: John Wakefield & Matt McGuinnessThe title track is ‘A Thousand Years’ by David A MolinaAdditional music: Plate Synthesis by Blue Dot Sessions courtesy of Free Music ArchiveWe would like to thank the National Gallery for allowing us to use the Gregorian Chants from the Virtual Veronese Project: It was sung by Veneti Cantores Choir, whom we also wish to thank.The music is an extract from the liturgy for Ash Wednesday, from the manuscript: Mantua, Archivio Storico Diocesano, A2, 1561. Resources: Virtual Veronese: https://www.storyfutures.com/news/storyfutures-presents-virtual-veroneseBeyond the early adopter: widening the appeal for virtual reality by Catherine Allen (Dec 2020)https://pec.ac.uk/policy-briefings/beyond-the-early-adopter-widening-the-appeal-for-virtual-realityThe Immersive Audience Journey Report (July 2020)https://audienceofthefuture.live/reports/immersive-audience-journey/Audience testing resourcehttps://medium.com/pintsizedrobotninja/vr-a-different-world-a-different-way-of-testing-6c91010bcb8bStoryFutures Researchhttps://www.storyfutures.com/showcaseBBC’s distribution through libraries VR Project https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2019/vr-local-libraries

People often see immersive technology as a way of entering new worlds to experience things that they would never normally get to do in real life. While there is certainly much out there to delight and entertain, immersive stories can also enable a glimpse into someone else's world or provoke new perspectives on social or political issues. This week we look at the issue-based work of two XR makers: Francesca Panetta, who led the Guardian’s VR studio and more recently has been dabbling in deep fake technology; and Karen Palmer, whose body of recent immersive work deals with race, ethics and AI to challenge our own implicit biases.With Francesca Panetta and Karen PalmerFrancesca Panetta, Artist & Journalisthttps://www.linkedin.com/in/francesca-panetta-895b457/Karen Palmer, Artisthttps://www.linkedin.com/in/storytellerfromthefuture/Credits:Presenter: Shehani FernandoProducers: Chris Hogg & Shehani Fernando Assistant Producer: Max BowerExecutive Producer: Will SaundersEditing and sound design: John Wakefield & Matt McGuinnessThe title track is ‘A Thousand Years’ by David A MolinaOther music: ‘Allston Night Owl’ by Blue Dot Sessions courtesy of Free Music ArchiveAdditional music by Neil CullenClips from ‘In Event of Moon Disaster’, courtesy of MIT Centre for Advanced Virtuality Clips from ‘6x9’ and ‘Sea Prayer’, Copyright Guardian News & Media Ltd 2020Clips from ‘Riot’ courtesy of Karen Palmer.Resources: In Event of Moon Disaster - co-directed by Francesca Panetta & Halsey Bergund, an MIT Centre for Advanced Virtuality Productionhttps://moondisaster.org/6x9: A virtual experience of solitary confinement https://www.theguardian.com/world/ng-interactive/2016/apr/27/6x9-a-virtual-experience-of-solitary-confinementExperience all The Guardian’s 360 contenthttps://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLa_1MA_DEorE_Qwa-4uURxeOvRxYfqA-6Karen Palmerhttp://karenpalmer.uk/Thoughtworks Artshttps://thoughtworksarts.io/Immerse NewsCreative discussion of emerging non fiction storytelling (and great newsletter)https://immerse.news/MIT’s Docubase of new forms of documentary storytellinghttps://docubase.mit.edu/VR Non-fiction - A Mediographyhttp://vrdocumentaryencounters.co.uk/vrmediography/Virtual Reality: Immersive Documentary Encounters research projecthttp://vrdocumentaryencounters.co.uk/Canny AIhttps://www.cannyai.com/Respeecher - Voice cloninghttps://www.respeecher.com/

In this episode, we'll be talking about sources of funding and looking at how some makers are trying to create sustainable business models. We have three guests to guide us through this emerging ecosystem.We'll hear from Mike Jones, a producer at Marshmallow Laser Feast about the location-based entertainment model, and to Dave Ranyard, CEO of Dream Reality Interactive who's been successful at creating mobile augmented reality games. We're also joined by immersive expert Liz Rosenthal, VR Programmer of the Venice Film Festival and founder of Power to the Pixel.With Liz Rosenthal, Mike Jones and Dave RanyardLiz Rosenthal, CEO, Power to the Pixelhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/liz-rosenthal-70b8b22/Mike Jones, Senior Producer, Marshmallow Laser Feasthttps://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-jones-7802431b3/Dave Ranyard, CEO, Dream Reality Interactivehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/daveranyard/Credits:Presenter: Shehani FernandoProducers: Chris Hogg & Shehani Fernando Assistant Producer: Max BowerExecutive Producer: Will SaundersEditing and sound design: John Wakefield & Matt McGuinnessThe title track is ‘A Thousand Years’ by David A MolinaOther music: ‘Broke Fashion’ by Anitek courtesy of Free Music ArchiveAdditional music by Neil CullenClips from ‘We Live in an Ocean of Air’ courtesy of Marshmallow Laser FeastClips from ‘Singheads’ courtesy of Dream Reality InteractiveResources: Liz Rosenthalhttp://www.powertothepixel.com/Creative XR: https://creativexr.co.uk/about-creative-xr/Venice Festival VR Section: https://www.labiennale.org/it/cinema/2020/venice-vr-expanded-web-sectionMarshmallow Laser Feast: https://www.marshmallowlaserfeast.com/Phi Centre: https://phi-centre.com/en/Dream Reality Interactive: https://www.dreamrealityinteractive.com/Innovate UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/innovate-ukImmerse UK: https://www.immerseuk.org/Digital Catapult: https://www.digicatapult.org.uk/technologies/immersiveAudiences of the Future: https://www.immerseuk.org/audience-of-the-future/about-audience-of-the-future/