XRMust XR Awards 2021: A Year in Immersive Storytelling

As in 2020, an immersive work takes up a lot of space. THE BOOK OF DISTANCE and GOLIATH: PLAYING WITH REALITY have in common a strong narrative, particularly anchored in the immersive medium, and a subject of extraordinary sensitivity. It is the confirmation that a new medium of expression needs ambition, and a particular language when it comes to creating interaction with the audience.

Far from demeriting, many projects have joined the different podiums of our awards. KUSUNDA, GLIMPSE, MADRID NOIR… but also live, musical or theatrical works such as WELCOME TO THE OTHER SIDE, WELCOME TO RESPITE or THE METAMOVIE: ALIEN RESCUE demonstrate the rise of the metaverse (keyword) in our creative spaces.

Which works will be online, live, what will be the place of the 360 film in the future: the form of XR creation is still – and fortunately – multiple. We’ll see what 2022 has in store for us, starting with a great selection at Sundance!

XRMust Awards 2021 – FINAL RESULTS

These awards are the result of a pre-selection process carried out by several XR influencers (Kathryn Yu from No Proscenium, Kent Bye from Voices of VR, Agnese Pietrobon, Antony Vitillo from SkarredGhost, Anne McKinnon from TheBoolean, Philippe Bédard and Alex Ruhl), and the participation of 637 professionals in the public vote that took place in December 2020 (355 in 2020).

IMPACT AWARD

First: GOLIATH: PLAYING WITH REALITY

Second: BREONNA’S GARDEN

Third: SPEAK TO AWAKEN: KUSUNDA

BEST ACTING OR VOICE ACTING

First: GOLIATH: PLAYING WITH REALITY

Second: GLIMPSE

Third: MADRID NOIR

BEST SCREENPLAY OR STORYTELLING

First: GOLIATH: PLAYING WITH REALITY

Second: MADRID NOIR

Third: NAMOO

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY / VISUAL DESIGN

First: GOLIATH: PLAYING WITH REALITY

Second: GLIMPSE

Third: MADRID NOIR

CREATOR OF THE YEAR

First: GOLIATH: PLAYING WITH REALITY by Barry Gene Murphy, May Abdalla

Second: SAMSARA by Hsin-chien Huang

Third: SPACE EXPLORERS: THE ISS EXPERIENCE by Félix Lajeunesse, Paul Raphaël

First: THE SEVERANCE THEORY: WELCOME TO RESPITE

Second: WELCOME TO THE OTHER SIDE

Third: DREAM (THE ROYAL SHAKESPEARE COMPANY)

First: ANAGRAM

Second: ATLAS V x NO GHOST (ex-aequo)

Third: FELIX & PAUL STUDIOS

First: SPACE EXPLORERS: THE ISS EXPERIENCE

Second: NAMOO

Third: REEDUCATED

First: GOLIATH: PLAYING WITH REALITY

Second: MADRID NOIR

Third: KUSUNDA

First: THE METAMOVIE PRESENTS: ALIEN RESCUE

Second: GOLIATH: PLAYING WITH REALITY

Third: SAMSARA

2021’s XR Event of the Year: XR3

XR3: one virtual exhibition to bring them all together (Cannes XR + NewImages + Tribeca)

“It is our role at the Marché du Film to support all innovations” – Guillaume Esmiol (Cannes XR)

“New forms of XR storytelling emerged during Covid” – Loren Hammonds (Tribeca Film Festival)

“Our festival must be an international laboratory for immersive creation” – Michael Swierczynski (NewImages Festival)

We talked about them

“A metaverse that is open, democratic, and adheres to ethical standards” – Jason Moore (Alien Rescue)

“Finding a balance between a story and the need of the users to shape it” – Jason Moore (The Metamovie Presents: Alien Rescue)

“At the intersection of story/game and connection” – Barry Gene Murphy, May Abdalla (GOLIATH: PLAYING WITH REALITY)

“With GOLIATH we wanted to offer an interactive documentary with an innovative and original narrative” – Katayoun Dibamehr (Floréal Films)

“We aim to create a suspending disbelief for the viewer” – Paul Raphaël (Felix & Paul)

“We removed the chronological structure to keep the emotion intact.” – Michael O’Connor (GLIMPSE)

“Take the potential and vitality of human interaction and heighten it with VR” – Ferryman Collective, CoAct Productions (WELCOME TO RESPITE)

“From the creative point of view KUSUNDA is a huge evolution from HOME AFTER WAR” – Gayatri Parameswaran, Felix Gaedtke (NowHere Media)

Decoding XR: REEDUCATED, Jon Bernson, Matt Huynh & Nicholas Rubin

“To bring people in inaccessible physical and emotional spaces” – Sam Wolson (Reeducated)

“We have to think about the accessibility and inclusiveness of what we create” – Sarah Ellis (Royal Shakespeare Company)

“Our stories are always an experimental adventure!” – Eric Darnell, Larry Cutler (Baobab Studios)

“To make the user believe that they matter” – Erick Oh, Kane Lee (NAMOO)

And our jury:

“I think the XR industry is on the right track now” – Antony Vitillo (SkarredGhost.com)

“We all need to remember what it was like to experience VR for the first-time, sometimes a simple 360 can be the most powerful” – Alex Rühl (VR Podcast)