12.12.2022 at 10.15
Palace of Culture and Science, Kruczkowski Hall (4th floor)

Not only film festivals – another perspective on the distribution of VR works

We have become used to VR being presented on the film festival circuit because it was within the film community that the first VR productions began to emerge and it was filmmakers who adopted the familiar infrastructure to present new formats using the language of film. Since then, a lot has changed and VR works have significantly expanded their field of possibilities becoming much more than just 360-degree video. This opens up both creators and audiences to new possibilities for presenting VR experiences – ones that correspond with both the form of these works and their content.

During the festival, we will talk to international distributors and curators about specific approaches to VR distribution and exhibition models and examples of projects that are trying to develop their own presentation models outside the film circuit.

Participants

Moderator
Anna Szylar
VnLab Visual Narratives Laboratory at the Film School in Łódź
Speakers
Agata di Tommaso
Diversion Cinema
Joseph Cutts
S1 Artspace
Michaela Ternasky-Holland
Emmy & Webby Award-Winning Creative Strategist & Impact Producer focusing on Experiential AR, VR and Metaverse
Anna
Szylar

Anna Szylar – cultural manager, curator and digital culture expert with eight years of experience working internationally. Initiator and coordinator of the Digital Cultures festival, which was organized by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute from 2017 to 2020. Propagator and promoter of Polish creative industries, the recognition of which she built during her many years of work at the Adam Mickiewicz Institute. She was responsible for the presence of Polish artists, game developers and VR experiences at international industry events abroad including SXSW (Austin), Game Developers Conference (San Francisco), AMAZE (Berlin), MUTEK (Montreal), Tribeca Film Festival (New York), Sheffield Doc Fest (Sheffield), IDFA (Amsterdam), among others. She is currently responsible for distribution and international relations at the Visual Narrative Lab. She cooperates programmatically with several new media festivals in Poland and abroad.

Agata
di Tommaso

Born and raised in Turin, Agata di Tommaso first studied Cinema. She then got a bachelor’s degree in Semiotics in Bologna, writing a master’s thesis on the impact of new technologies on exhibitions, from its creation to the visitors’ experience. After a double Master in Management of Cultural Goods that took her from Venice to Paris, she met with Diversion cinema.

Cinema, new technologies, immersive realities are in the DNA of this company, that, in the last 3 years, has become a leader in distribution & diffusion of immersive productions.

Joseph
Cutts

Joseph Cutts is an international curator and video installation artist working in the fields of visual arts, immersive arts and film. He works at S1 Artspace in Sheffield, UK. Cutts was previously chief curator of Sheffield DocFest (2010-20), directing its festival and year-round artistic program, and curator and artistic advisor to the Adam Mickiewicz Institute in Warsaw (2020-21). Cutts recently received funding from the Arts Council to support his research into the cycle of e-waste, from mineral extraction through the production, distribution and “recycling” of electronic devices.

Michaela
Ternasky-Holland

Michaela Ternasky-Holland is an Emmy, Webby, and Sheffield Doc/Fest award-winning XR/metaverse storyteller. Recently named as one of the 100 Original Voices of XR, she creates non-fiction and socially impactful stories by using immersive and interactive technology. She focuses on the impact of the projects to move beyond the project itself. When she isn’t creating her own original projects, she consults for socially conscious companies and non-profit organizations on creative strategy and impact production. Her work has been featured by TIME, Forbes, The Guardian, Cannes Film Festival, Sundance Film Festival, Tribeca Film Festival, and The New York Public Library. 

She has created and collaborated on XR/metaverse projects, concerning but not limited to, surveillance technology, cerebral palsy, domestic gun violence, elimination of nuclear weapons, racial equity, and global access to education. 

Not only does she strive to be a part of purpose-driven projects that vocalize and educate about diversity in storytelling, but she also works in tandem with decision-makers, committees, and boards of directors that financially support, mentor, and create opportunities for those of all backgrounds.