Tag: festival

Full Lineup Revealed For Belfast XR Festival With Top Extended Reality Experiences On The Bill

An innovative arts festival is set to once again merge technology and art to create a unique virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) experience for attendees.

Belfast XR, now in its third year, specialises in curating worldclass immersive technology content that takes the art of storytelling to a new level.

Extended Reality or ‘XR’ is the collective name for virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). VR is a computer-generated artificial environment with scenes that appear to be real, while AR is a digital overlay onto the real world, which is viewed through your phone or an iPad.

This year’s lineup has been confirmed to include three unique paid for experiences along with an additional three free bonus experiences available for visitors to the festival.

Appearing at the festival will be the magical VR journey through the work of Catalan architect and designer Antoni Gaudí in Gaudí, The Atelier of the Divine.

Attendees will take part in a 20 minute experience designed for small groups of six.

The story will take festival goers back to 1926 when, weakened by age and feeling his death approaching, Gaudí invites his new assistants to discover his studio, to understand his vision and complete his work.

The heart-wrenching voyage of survival Stay Alive My Son is also one of the key events, based on the internationally acclaimed memoirs of Pin Yathay, this immersive 60 minute story thrusts audiences into the shoes of a pained father forced to make the gut-wrenching decision to abandon his six-year-old son to survive during the Cambodian genocide.

The final headline experience will be Eternal, the profound exploration of eternal life, where during this 20 minute experience attendees will step into the realm of eternity with a mesmerising audio journey designed exclusively for one person, in the comfort of their own bed.

As intimate audiences of just two people per time slot climb into a bed they will delve into a profound exploration of eternal life and contemplate the sacrifices one might make for immortality.

Deepa Mann-Kler, director and curator for Belfast XR Festival which is an annual gathering for the XR arts – storytelling, visual arts, music, drama, dance, literature and theatre, said bringing virtual and augmented reality content to new audiences locally is something the team at Belfast XR are passionate about.

She said: “Our ambition is to create an unmissable annual gathering for XR that inspires storytelling and our passion is to bring the best global virtual and augmented reality content to new local audiences. You don’t need to have used a virtual reality headset before, as our team will guide you through the whole process.”

For attendees who purchase tickets for any of the headline events this year they will have exclusive access to three additional free experiences.

Emperor is a 40 minute long captivating virtual reality experience that delves into the mind of a father grappling with aphasia. Attendees will witness the poignant journey of a daughter striving to connect with her speechless father, uncovering the depths of his memories along the way.

Flow is a 15 minute experience where users will be swept away by the winds through what appears to be an ordinary day filled with turbulence. Encounter the sensations of smells, heat and breath, as the air currents unveil hidden presences and reveal captivating events in the life of a woman.

SEN is also a 15 minute experience where attendees will enter the mystical realm of the traditional Japanese tea room, where they’ll meet SEN, the tea spirit. As disaster strikes and SEN dissolves into the universe, it discovers unity with all beings, bringing calm to the tea room.

Running on Wednesday February 28 and Thursday 29 this year’s festival theme is Legacy which will offer attendees the chance to experience world history in captivating ways allowing audiences to step into the past, interact with historical figures, and explore significant events firsthand.

Belfast XR Festival is both for XR enthusiasts and those who haven’t experienced any form of XR in the past.

Deepa explained: “The Festival is aimed at 16+ years of age and is open to everyone. You don’t need to have experienced AR, VR or any of these types of experiences before. We  have an amazing team who will guide you through the whole process from the  minute you step into The Black Box.

“I want people to have memorable experiences. I want them to be altered, in a good way. I want them to talk about how it made them feel. I want to increase their appetite to experience more.

The Belfast XR Festival is supported by the National Lottery through the Arts Council of Northern Ireland. It is also supported by the Department for Communities through Northern Ireland Screen, Digital Catapult NI, Future Screens NI and Ulster Screen Academy.

For more information follow Belfast XR Festival on social media or go to belfastxrfestival.com

GreenTechHQ announces sustainability innovation panel as part of IMMA Earth Rising Festival

From ideation to sustainable innovation to financial success: Hear from those who have seen, solved, produced, and are having business success in the journey towards creating a positive climate change.

GreenTechHQ is taking part in this year’s IMMA Earth Rising Festival.  A four-day festival of free events and experiences aimed at addressing the climate crisis and inspiring collective action towards a sustainable and hopeful future.  Taking place from Thursday, 21st to Sunday, 24th September 2023, at the landmark Royal Hospital Kilmainham in Dublin. The GreenTechHQ: Sustainable Innovation Panel will take place on Friday, 22nd at 5pm in the People’s Pavilion.  

The panel will be hosted by serial entrepreneur, GreenTechHQ founder & CEO, Ed Murphy.  Ed will be joined by a panel of four leading start up innovators who will share their (on-going) journey to success.  Each panellist has been put forward by the regional innovation hub which has supported their journey through mentoring, accelerator programmes, training, marketing or introductions to key players within the area of their innovation.

Is there business opportunities in finding the right sustainable innovations, we think there is. This is your opportunity to hear and meet with leading, successful players within the sustainable innovation sector. Those who have seen, solved, produced, and are having financial success in the journey towards creating a positive climate change. Hear about process from the creativity and development of that initial idea origin; from the seed of the idea to the delivery of viable financial solution.

Martin Johnson of Eco Diversity – representing Ludgate

Martin is an environmental scientist, technologist and innovator working across a diverse range of topics including marine biogeochemistry, biomaterials and knowledge exchange. He and his partner Lisa recently founded Ecodiversity, a company focussed on joining the dots between science, policy and industry in support of green transformation. He also works for a broad range of organisations on technical consultancy including aquaculture systems, marine modelling and scrutinising carbon dioxide removal methods.

Angie Nagle of Blade Bridge – representing Republic of Work

Anne has a PhD in assessing the environmental, social and economic aspects of repurposing wind turbine blades, completed under the Re-Wind Network research group.  My main focus was in using Life Cycle Assessment and Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment to choose which repurposing ideas to take to pilot. Our company BladeBridge was a spin out from the research conducted on a pedestrian bridge made from discarded wind turbine blades.  BladeBridge also makes street furniture, and is beginning development of a blade tower which could be used for telecomms or lighting.

 

Daniel Izquierdo Hijazi of Micronagritech – representing Dogpatch

Daniel, having studied Product Design, co-founded 3 start-ups, including Micron Agritech.  Currently CEO at Micron Agritech, managing a team of 17 people building products that are changing the way the agriculture sector manages animal health, reducing overmedication, emissions and AMR. Washington Ireland Program 2020 alumnus.

Paul Mahon of Watt Footprint – representing GreenTechHQ

Paul Mahon is the co-founder of Watt Footprint, a company focused on reducing energy costs and usage. Now managing an in-house team comprising engineers, auditors, metering experts software developers, and project managers, Watt Footprint takes a turnkey approach to energy efficiency.

 

Esri Ireland map celebrates history of Pride in Ireland

Esri Ireland, the market leader in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), has created an LGBTQ+ Pride Month digital StoryMap. The map highlights ‘The History of Pride in Ireland’ and features a full schedule of Pride celebrations across the country that will last all summer long.

Using the interactive map, developed with Esri’s ArcGIS digital mapping system, embark on a captivating journey that follows the story of the LGBTQ+ community in Ireland. Discover pivotal historical moments, significant locations, and transformative events that sparked a profound societal shift towards a more diverse and inclusive Ireland. The map also features LGBTQ+ Resource Centres that offer support, guidance, and meetups across the island of Ireland.

As citizens from every corner of the country prepare to unite in a radiant display of rainbow hues, the Summer of Pride Map is your guide to the vibrant tapestry of Pride festivals and parades that are happening around Ireland. This year, the iconic Dublin Pride Festival (19th – 25th June) celebrates the 40th anniversary of the first Dublin Pride Parade. From Belfast to Galway to Cork there will be theatre, live music, quiz nights, rock & roll bingo, parades, and more. To top it all off, this year Laois is making history with its first-ever Pride Festival on September 14-17th.

Esri maps Ireland’s summer 2023 festival circuit

Esri Ireland, the market leader in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), has created a digital map highlighting some of the best loved and lesser known festivals happening across the island of Ireland this summer.

Using Esri’s ArcGIS digital mapping system, the interactive map has something for all tastes and interests, allowing you to plan your ultimate festival adventure with ease.

Indulge in the tasty tunes at Forbidden Fruit in Dublin, dive into the inspiring realm of creativity at Wildroots in Sligo, let your senses be serenaded at the New Ross Piano Festival, and unleash your wild side at the electrifying Folk Festival in Cork. This essential map will serve as your trusted guide, leading you straight to the beating heart of Ireland’s vibrant festival culture this summer.

Link to map

Dublin Smartphone Film Festival is back with a BANG with more Mobile Movie Magic

Now in its 6th year, The Dublin Smartphone Film Festival returns to the Capital for another weekend of mobile movie brilliance. Taking place on June 3rd -DubSmartFF has the usual exciting mix of shorts, features and workshops, but this time at the beautiful MART GALLERY & RATHMINES Ominplex in Dublin 6

This year’s festival is bigger than ever with filmmaking workshops, a range of short films from 15 countries around the globe, and an Irish premiere of the heartbreaking documentary Everybody’s Oma from award-winning with director Jason Vangenderen 

The festival organizers have meticulously curated an exceptional program, emphasizing powerful original concepts and innovative utilization of technology. In an exciting development, this year’s festival has partnered with esteemed brands such as Zacuto, Dreamgrip, and Zhyiun as well as Ireland’s premier tech site, Goosed.ie. These collaborations will offer fantastic prizes and gifts to fortunate audience members coming to the event

Festival Director Robert Fitzhugh commented: “We just could not believe the success of the festival in the past five years. We sell out each year before the doors even open. The pandemic and subsequent lockdowns have brought about an incredible period of creativity with people forced to use the tools they have at their disposal to tell stories. There has never been a more interesting time to explore Smartphone filmmaking. This is what the Dublin Smartphone Film Festival is here to do; to encourage the next generation of filmmakers to create their stories using their phones and to provide them with the widest possible platform to present these stories to a wider audience”

The Dublin Smartphone Film Festival will take place on the 3RD of June 2023 at the Irish Film Institute and online from May 1st to May 7th 

Tickets

Filmmaking Workshop:  https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/630634182817

Gimbal Workshop: https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/630779948807

Shorts Programme: https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/630634182817

Feature: https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/631404145797

 

The Performance Corporation presents the ground breaking Live and Virtual Reality (VR) experience Emperor 101 at SXSW 11-14 March 2022

Award-winning theatrical innovators The Performance Corporation will present their cutting edge experience Emperor 101 at the world famous tech/arts festival, first presented at Dublin Theatre Festival 2021. The production allows live performers to interact with audiences in Live Virtual Reality (VR) and explore the explosion of online conspiracy theories, and the parallel rise of far-right extremism. For this presentation, the performers will be in 2 separate countries, the server that supports the tech in another, and the audience in headsets in Austin.

This ground-breaking production, is at the cutting edge of an emerging crossover between theatre and Virtual Reality. The Performance Corporation is one of the first theatre companies in the world to design and build a bespoke virtual world in which to stage a Live VR experience. In this VR space, live actors and audience inhabit avatars that allow them to interact and speak to each other in real time.

Speaking about the production, Artistic Director of The Performance Corporation Jo Mangan said: “It’s incredibly exciting to be part of what we believe is a new departure for theatre. I believe that by creating this kind of live and interactive performance in a specially designed virtual space, we can open up a huge array of new possibilities. We’re lucky to have an amazing team working on Emperor 101 to create this completely new experience for theatre audience and thrilled to be taking it to the prestigious SXSW with the support of Culture Ireland.”

The Performance Corporation believes plays like Emperor 101 have huge potential, and plan to further develop this digital genre in the future. The company envisages future live VR productions that would be available to audience members in locations across the world simultaneously, opening up new theatrical frontiers.

In the play, we meet a notorious conspiracy theorist who has built a Virtual Reality space to induct recruits to her organisation. She wants her country to go back to the past, but her own traumatic history is threatening to destroy the movement she has built.

Emperor 101 immerses the audience in an alternate world that reflects the mind and motivations of a conspiracy theorist. In a time when the very notion of truth or facts is called into question, the innovative use of VR reflects the multiple realities or ‘bubbles’ we live in. The piece riffs on influences from ancient mythology to Alice in Wonderland, and asks if rejection of the ‘mainstream’ is a product of fear, or the ultimate act of self-empowerment in a complex world.

Emperor 101 begins with an intimate in person interaction with a live performer. The audience then puts on a Virtual Reality headset and is led through a series of interactive environments. Here they experience live interaction with performer avatars. The story explores the inner life of a high profile conspiracy theorist as she struggles with a personal tragedy that has turned the world upside down.

Company

Cast: Caitríona Ní Mhurchú and Karl Quinn

Directed by Jo Mangan

Script Tom Swift

Design Leon Butler and Peter Power

VR Producer Camille Donegan

Immersive Media Studio RETinIZE

Produced by The Performance Corporation