FIVARS 2024 brings A Journey Inside VR Poetry Experience by Lytisha Fiona Tunbridge to the forefront. We had the pleasure of discussing the journey behind this unique VR piece with her.
What led to the creation of this piece?
Thanks to an outreach to artists course from the University of Nottingham, I learned about VR, XR, and much more. I saw the potential to use VR as part of an installation with my poem, A Journey Inside. I successfully applied to Arts Council England for funding and was able to employ musicians and work with the Mixed Reality Lab to create this piece.
What was the production process for you and your team? What did you learn?
As a poet, the first thing I learned was that techies and poets speak different languages! It was a fun learning curve. I developed the script on a continuous sheet of wallpaper, and there ensued an interesting confusion when I was asked to upload the script.
The poem was one I had already used in collaboration with CoMA, a contemporary Orchestra, to develop an auditory experience, so having the capacity to see how I could create a shared visualization of the poem whilst still keeping it an individual experience allowed me space to develop my ideas further. I was delighted to find that, working with Professor Paul Tennant & team, everything I suggested was possible.
I learned so much about how Unity works, how order and spatial awareness can flex, and how everyone can have a different experience, even without being interactive, simply by looking at things from various angles. I also learned how much time these processes take and that having a tight development team makes a huge difference.
I am particularly interested in accessibility, so I developed this piece to be experienced lying down but with a seated option. This enables anyone able to wear a headset to share the experience. I also added a dynamic subtitles option as another feature. I have presented A Journey Inside VR poem as part of an immersive production that includes medical terms and opens the discussions on MRI experiences generally.
How did you become an immersive media content creator and why?
As a writer involved in the Live, Experiential, and Digital Diversification: Nottingham (LEADD:NG) project, I was keen to develop and transfer my storytelling skills into the VR world. This is my first, but not my last, project. Having seen the potential, I am keen to expand my creative output beyond the aural and page worlds into the virtual worlds.
What is the VR/AR industry like in your region?
Nottingham is one of the growing XR hubs in the UK, thanks to being a town with two universities and a large creative cultural industries sector.
What do you have planned for the future?
I am looking to collaborate and develop more projects, especially with an emphasis on accessibility.
What would you like to share with fellow content creators and the industry?
I hope to see a continued expansion beyond the game world. There are huge and varied cultural opportunities, particularly for making experiences as accessible and inclusive as possible.
Do you think VR festivals like FIVARS are important?
Yes! The industry needs opportunities to gather, see best practices, interact, socialize, and enjoy, especially internationally. Thank you, FIVARS, for the opportunity to participate. I am pleased to see more film festivals that recognize the VR world.
A Journey Inside VR Poetry Experience plays at FIVARS 2024 Festival October 3rd through October 8th.
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