The Venice Immersive section will present 63 projects from 25 countries.
The selection of projects for Venice Immersive, the XR – Extended Reality section of the 81st Venice International Film Festival (28th August – 7th September 2024) of La Biennale di Venezia, is now complete. Launched in 2017, the section represents the first competition and official selection for works in Extended Reality in an A-list festival. The official program will take place on the Venice Immersive Island (island of Lazzaretto Vecchio), a short distance from the Lido di Venezia, on the following dates:
27th August (afternoon): Press preview
28th August: open exclusively to Press, Industry and Venice Immersive accreditation holders
29th August – 7th September: open to all accredited visitors
Venice Immersive is entirely devoted to immersive arts and media and includes all types of creative XR expression: 360° videos, virtual and mixed reality and XR works of any length, including installations, haptics and virtual worlds.
The Venice Immersive section of the 81st Venice International Film Festival will be held with the support of VRChat.
Venice Immersive will present 63 projects from 25 countries:
26 projects in Competition, representing a selection of 19 world premieres and 7 international premieres of the world’s best immersive works
30 projects Out of Competition, an international selection of the best works that have been released or premiered elsewhere since the last edition of the Venice International Film Festival; this section is divided into:
Best of Experiences, 10 projects
Best of Worlds, 20 projects, created by independent artists from all over the world on the VRChat social platform, an ecosystem of virtual worlds presented in guided tours
7 projects developed during the Biennale College Cinema – Immersive: 1 project produced thanks to the grant from this year’s eighth edition, 6 projects developed within the international workshop of the eighth, seventh, sixth and fifth editions
The Venice International Film Festival was one of the first film festivals in the world to show an interest in Virtual Reality. The development of a VR Theatre in 2016 sparked enormous interest among the participants of the Venice Production Bridge. Starting in 2017, La Biennale di Venezia launched the first competition for works in Virtual Reality in an A-list festival, which was held for three editions, through 2019, on the island of Lazzaretto Vecchio on the Lido, judged by an International Jury. The online accessibility of Venice VR Expanded over two editions (2020 and 2021) represented a new commitment and a new challenge to guarantee that the Venice International Film Festival would continue to offer the experience of this new art form, even in times of required social distancing. In 2022 the section, renamed Venice Immersive, returned in person to the island. Since the very first years, the section has been recognised as a unique event in the field and the most significant annual exhibition of immersive arts and media.
THE INTERNATIONAL JURY
The members of the international Venice Immersive Jury are:
-Celine Daemen – President: (Netherlands) born in 1995, she is a director of transdisciplinary art. Her work develops at the interface of theatre, music, visual arts and digital media. She creates immersive experiences that invite the audience on a journey inwards and take them to a place where personal associations arise in response to universal philosophical questions. Celine is the founder of Studio Nergens. In 2022 her VR opera Eurydice, a descent into infinity premiered in the Venice Immersive selection in competition. After that, it received several awards during its international tour. Her latest VR opera Songs for a Passerby premiered last year at the Mostra. It won the Venice Immersive Grand Prize and has since been touring prestigious festivals and cultural venues around the world.
-Marion Burger: (France) born in 1987, she is a production designer who has worked on many feature films, including Divines by Houda Benyamina, that won the Caméra d’or at Cannes Film festival in 2016, Gagarine by Jérémy Trouilh and Fanny Liatard, in Cannes official selection in 2020, and more recently Mother and Son by Léonor Serraille, also in Cannes in 2022 edition. As a former graduate of the Duperré design school, she has always been attracted by the transversality of creative media. Emperor, an empathic VR experience co-created with Ilan J. Cohen, that won Venice Immersive achievement prize last year, marked her directorial debut.
-Adriaan Lokman: (Netherlands) was born in 1960, he is creator of time based, linear, interactive and cross-media projects. After graduating at the Willem de Kooning Academy Rotterdam in illustration and audio-visual design, he worked in Rotterdam, where he ran his production studio for animation, web design and event concepts. In 2002 his film Barcode was awarded the Grand Prix d’Annecy. In last edition of the Mostra Flow was awarded the Special Immersive Jury prize. In his short films, he investigated the boundaries between abstraction and reality, with the ongoing desire to involve the viewer.
MAMIE LOU by ISABELLE ANDREANI
France, Luxembourg / 25’ / virtual reality
MAMMARY MOUNTAIN by TARA BAOTH MOONEY, CAMILLE C. BAKER, MAF’J ALVAREZ
UK, Ireland / 23’ / installation, haptic, virtual reality
UNE EAU LA NUIT (BODIES OF WATER) by CHÉLANIE BEAUDIN-QUINTIN, CAROLINE LAURIN-BEAUCAGE
Canada / 10’ / virtual reality
UNCANNY ALLEY: A NEW DAY by STEPHEN BUTCHKO, RICK TREWEEK
USA, South Africa / 75’ / world, virtual reality, immersive theatre
IN THE REALM OF RIPLEY by SOO EUNG CHUCK CHAE, EUN JUNG CHAE
South Korea / 50’ / installation, virtual reality, interactive film
FREE UR HEAD by TUNG-YEN CHOU
Taipei / 30’ / installation, virtual reality, live performance
PROJECT: LOST WORLDS by FINS
USA / 60’ / world, virtual reality
THE ART OF CHANGE by SIMONE FOUGNIER, VINCENT ROOIJERS
Italy, The Netherlands, USA / 10’ / virtual reality
OTO’S PLANET by GWENAEL FRANÇOIS
Luxembourg, Canada, France / 28’ / virtual reality
UN SOIR AVEC LES IMPRESSIONNISTES, PARIS 1874 by PIERRE GABLE
France / 42’ / installation, virtual reality
CECI EST MON CŒUR by STÉPHANE HUEBER-BLIES, NICOLAS BLIES
Luxembourg, Canada, France / 35’ / installation, haptic, projection
PUDICA by KEISUKE ITOH
Japan / 15’ / installation, mixed reality
ADDRESS UNKNOWN: FUKUSHIMA NOW by ARIF KHAN
Japan, USA, Taipei / 25’ / virtual reality
THE GUARDIANS OF JADE MOUNTAIN by HAYOUN KWON
France, Taipei / 18’ / installation, virtual reality
ITO MEIKYU by BORIS LABBÉ
France, Luxembourg / 15’ / virtual reality
STRANGEWAYS by ADAM LIEBER, CHRIS BIANCHI
UK, South Africa, Malta / 30’ / world, virtual reality
FRAGILE HOME by ONDŘEJ MORAVEC, VICTORIA LOPUKHINA
Czech Republic / 30’ / installation, mixed reality
IMPULSE: PLAYING WITH REALITY by BARRY GENE MURPHY, MAY ABDALLA
UK, France / 35’ / installation, mixed reality
ŽAISTI GYVENIMĄ (PLAY LIFE) by ZILVINAS NAUJOKAS, VILIUS PETRAUSKAS, MANTAS PRONCKUS, DONATAS ULVYDAS, ALGIS KRISCIUNAS, DARIUS ZICKUS
Lithuania / 26’ / virtual reality
RENCONTRES by MATHIEU PRADAT
France, Taipei / 50’ / installation, virtual reality
A SIMPLE SILENCE by CRAIG QUINTERO
Taipei / 12’ / virtual reality
PROJECT_Y: WORKING TITLE by YUZO SUGANO, SHINGO YOSHIMURA, TOSHIKI SAKAMOTO, TARO HIRAI
Japan / 90’ / virtual reality
MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: SILVER PHANTOM by KENICHI SUZUKI
Japan, France, USA / 90’ / virtual reality
SYMBIOSIS/\DYSBIOSIS: SENTIENCE by TOSCA TERÁN, BRENDAN LEHMAN, ANDREI GRAVELLE, SVEN STEFFENS
Canada, Germany, Chile / 90’ / installation, virtual reality, live performance
CHAMP DE BATAILLE by FRANÇOIS VAUTIER
France, Belgium, Luxembourg / 21’ / virtual reality
ALL I KNOW ABOUT TEACHER LI by ZHUZMO
USA / 20’ / virtual reality
Best of Experiences
TURBULENCE: JAMAIS VU by BEN JOSEPH ANDREWS, EMMA ROBERTS
Australia / 10’ / installation, virtual reality
WHAT IF…? – AN IMMERSIVE STORY by DAVE BUSHORE
USA / 50’ / mixed reality
40 DIAS SEM O SOL (40 DAYS WITHOUT THE SUN) by JOAO FURIA
Brazil / 15’ / virtual reality
NIGHTMARA: EPISODE 3 by GIANPAOLO GONZALEZ
USA / 14’ / virtual reality
ASTRA by ELIZA MCNITT
France, USA / 60’ / mixed reality
ADVENTURE by CHARLOTTE MIKKELBORG, ELLIOT GRAVES
UK / 25’ / virtual reality
RIVEN by RAND MILLER, RICHARD WENDE, HANNAH GAMIEL, ERIC ANDERSON, TONY FRYMAN
USA / 45’ / virtual reality
MUSEUM ALIVE IMMERSIVE WITH DAVID ATTENBOROUGH by BHAUMIK PATEL
UK / 10’/ mixed reality
TELOS I by EMIL DAM SEIDEL, DOROTEA SAYKALY
Canada, Sweden, Denmark, UK / 23’/ installation
THE 7TH GUEST VR by PAUL VAN DER MEER
The Netherlands / virtual reality
Best of Worlds
COMPLICATION by Ende
CHROMATIC FREQUENCY by Axinovium
CONCRETE – PALE SANDS by May ~ and jerk
ECCENTIC ROOMS by suzuki_i
ENDLESS RESIDENTS SUPER ULTRA DELUXE EDITION by Spencer Filson
EXOPLANET JOURNEY by Niko
FINISHING TOUCH – ART STUDIO ＆ GALLERY by Mixieǃ
LIKE A CANVAS by haruki_haru
LIMINAL DREAMS˸ THE POOLROOMS by ∗Lotus∗
MAGIC AI-ART˸ DIMENSIONS by Niko∗
MAGNETIZE by Juice…
MORMOVERSE˸ UNDER THE PILLOW by GeorgyMolodtsov
OVERVIEW EFFECT EXPERIENCE by THE SHUSHU
PHATTA by Sumeru
POLYRHYTHM by SkyeSage
SANCTUM by Muzz, ju.no
SMEW BRUSHǃ by Smew
SNR Labs: Test Facility by A://DDOS
SUKU by durk＠work
VRC MUSEUM by Ectique
BIENNALE COLLEGE CINEMA – IMMERSIVE OUT OF COMPETITION
EARTHS TO COME by ROSE BOND producer: MELANIE COOMBS
USA / 13’ / virtual reality
Developed during Biennale College Cinema Immersive, 8th edition (2023/2024)
DUCHAMPIANA by LILIAN HESS producer: SARAH ARNAUD, KATHRIN BRUNNER, OLIVER CZESLIK
France, Germany / 10’ / installation, virtual reality
Developed during Biennale College Cinema VR, 5th edition (2020/2021)
GARDEN ALCHEMY by MICHELLE KRANOT, URI KRANOT producer: URI KRANOT, PETER FISHER, SIMON LAJBOSCHITZ
Denmark / 45’ / installation, virtual reality
Developed during Biennale College Cinema VR, 7th edition (2022/2023)
CHUNG-NAN-PAN-TAO WEI-CHIH-MOU-CHU (SOMEWHERE UNKNOWN IN INDOCHINA) by ASIO CHIHSIUNG LIU, FENG TING TSOU producer: FENG TING TSOU, ASIO CHIHSIUNG LIU
Taipei, Belgium, Canada, Vietnam, Cambodia / 38’ / virtual reality
Developed during Biennale College Cinema VR, 6th edition (2021/2022)
BELOW DECK by MARTINA MAHLKNECHT, MARTIN PRINOTH producer: MARTINA MAHLKNECHT, MARTIN PRINOTH
Germany, Italy / 23’ / installation, virtual reality
Developed during Biennale College Cinema VR, 7th edition (2022/2023)
THE GOSSIPS’ CHRONICLES by CORINNE MAZZOLI producer: MARTA BIANCHI
Italy / 30’/ installation, mixed reality
Produced with the grant from Biennale College Cinema Immersive, 8th edition (2023/2024)
ECHOS OF ASH VALLEY by SHU ZHU producer: SULTAN PIRZHAN, JONATHAN WARNER, ZEMO ZHENG
USA / 17’ / installation, virtual reality
Developed during Biennale College Cinema Immersive, 8th edition (2023/2024)
VENICE PRODUCTION BRIDGE – VENICE IMMERSIVE MARKET
The 3rd edition of the Venice Immersive Market (29th August – 3rd September), a part of the Venice Production Bridge, will take place on the Venice Immersive Island (Lazzaretto Vecchio).
The Venice Immersive Market is gathering all the Venice Production Bridge Immersive activities during the Venice International Film Festival. These activities include: the presentation of immersive projects of both the Venice Gap-Financing Market and the Biennale College Cinema Immersive through 1-to-1 meetings; panels and networking events dedicated to immersive topics; an Exhibition Area for Institutions, public and private funds, the manufacturers, the VR production, distribution and sales companies, public and private funds supporting VR/XR/AR, VFX and post-production companies that are connected to Immersive content.
The Venice Immersive Island will also host an array of social events, including Venice Production Bridge Panels and Cocktails. It will also feature international booths, allowing attendees to personally experience titles and projects, meet with representatives of supporting firms, and engage with their various services.
In the Spazio Incontri Immersivo there will be, from 29th August to 3rd September, panel discussions and activities dedicated to the world of XR – Extended Reality.
The 2024 VPB Focus are Luxemburg & Wallonia-Brussels and Japan. Film Fund Luxemburg (Luxemburg), Centre du Cinéma et de l’Audiovisuel (Wallonia-Brussels) and JETRO (Japan) will have dedicated areas within the context of VPB.
The Island will also be the place where teams (producer and creator) of the Immersive projects selected for the Venice Gap-Financing Market will gather (30thAugust – 1st September 2024):
16 IMMERSIVE PROJECTS:
16 Immersive projects (11 from Europe and 5 from around the world), including fiction, documentary, animation and other interactive installation-based experiences, included the 4 projects coming from the Wallonia-Brussels & Luxembourg and the Japan VPB Focuses. All projects have secured 30% of their budget and have this financing in place. These 16 projects will deliver a live pitch at the Spazio Incontri Immersivo on the morning of 30th August.
8 BIENNALE COLLEGE CINEMA – IMMERSIVE PROJECTS:
8 projects, that have been developed during the workshop of Biennale College Cinema Immersive, eighth edition, and that have reached different stages of development, pre-production and post-production.
Registered delegates with Industry Gold or Trade accreditations will be entitled to request meetings with the selected projects through our website (veniceproductionbridge.org) in the dedicated area to the Venice Gap-Financing Market.
The Venice Immersive Market will be the place where institutions, professionals, production, post-production and distribution companies, public and private funds linked to the Immersive world will convene.
ABOUT 128 YEARS OF VENICE BIENNALE
The Venice Biennale has been for over 120 years one of the most prestigious cultural institutions in the world. Established in 1895, the Biennale has an attendance today of over 500,000 visitors at the Art Exhibition. La Biennale di Venezia was founded in 1895 and is now one of the most famous and prestigious cultural organizations in the world. La Biennale, who stands at the forefront of research and promotion of new contemporary art trends, organizes exhibitions and research in all its specific departments: Arts (1895), Architecture (1980), Cinema (1932), Dance (1999), Music (1930), and Theatre (1934). Its history is documented at the Historical Archives of Contemporary Arts (ASAC) that has been completely renovated in recent years
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