Here’s a piece of news that we’re very excited to share:
“The Surrogate,” a narrative, virtual reality experience VR Playhouse co-produced
with Peter Flaherty and Logan Brown, is a finalist in the VR/AR category at SXSW’s Interactive Innovation Awards.
Melding 360-video with a computer-generated explorable environment, The Surrogate immerses viewers in the consciousness of a female protagonist whose point of view they control as they explore the photorealistic passageways snaking behind the walls of a modern house. The viewer can see into the rooms of the house through a series of portals in which live action, hemispherical videos offer an immersive vantage point. The viewer is able to choose how they experience the narrative by moving through the passageways autonomously, deciding how they follow the action, and which rooms they look into at any
given time.
As the story begins, we learn that our protagonist suffers from an anxiety disorder caused by a proliferation of information and visual stimuli present in the story’s near-future setting. After struggling with the disorder and experimenting with various treatments, she ultimately decides to hire a “surrogate” to assume her physical presence, allowing her to retreat into the safe confines of the constructed passageways.
Reflecting some of our own most prevalent cultural fears and afflictions in the digital age, The Surrogate tells an important story in new and exciting ways and we’re thrilled to be sharing it with SXSW community!