2017 Sheffield DocFest Alternate Realities Guide

Alternate Realities #sheffdocfest  sheffdocfest.com

Alternate Realities

Touch, swipe, and play your way through sensory storyworlds in our virtual reality and interactive exhibition.

The Exhbition is free of charge and open to all. Prior booking is necessary for all virtual reality experiences.

Opening Times & Booking Information

Immersive VR at Millennium Gallery Fri 09 June / 12:00 – 17:00 Sat 10 June / 10:00 – 17:00

Sun 11 June / 11:00 – 16:00 Mon 12 June / 10:00 – 17:00 & 18:00 – 20:00

Tue 13 June / 10:00 – 20:00 Wed 14 June / 10:00 – 20:00

Free Entry

Immersive VR & Interactive at Millennium Gallery (S1 2PP) Fri 09 June / 12:00 – 17:00 Sat 10 June / 10:00 – 17:00 Sun 11 June / 11:00 – 16:00 Mon 12 June / 10:00 – 17:00 & 18:00 – 20:00 Tue 13 June / 10:00 – 20:00 Wed 14 June / 10:00 – 20:00 For Immersive VR at Millennium Gallery, visit the Doc/Info Point outside the exhibition room to book your hour–long slot. Once inside the exhibition room, you can book for each individual project by speaking to a VR Volunteer.

In advance of your visit to Immersive VR, please consult this Alternate Realities Guide to decide which projects you would most like to view. It is not possible to experience every project in one hour so we encourage you to return if you would like to see them all.

No booking is required for Interactive at Millennium Gallery.

Virtual Reality Portal on Tudor Square (S1 2LA) & Virtual Reality Campfire at Upper Chapel (S1 2JD) Fri 09 June / 12:00 – 20:00 Sat 10 June / 10:00 – 20:00 For Virtual Realty Portal on Tudor Square and Virtual Reality Campfire at Upper Chapel, look out for VR Volunteers at each venue who will be able to book you a slot.

Sessions will be available to book daily for all venues, with some slots available for the next day. There is limited availability for each experience so please do book early.

All projects in the exhibition are subject to individual age recommendations, as directed by the artist. If you are not sure, please ask a volunteer or member of staff.

In addition, Doc/Fest does not recommend that virtual reality equipment is used by anyone with a pacemaker or epilepsy, who is pregnant, or is under the age of 13. If anyone under the age of 13 wishes to view projects, they must have permission from a parent or guardian who must accompany them at all times. All visitors use the equipment at their own risk; Doc/Fest is not liable for any accident or injury sustained.

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1. First Impressions Creators: Francesca Panetta, Nicole Jackson UK / 2017 / World Premiere Age Recommendation: 13+ Using the latest research in neural development and colour vision in infants, First Impressions allows you to experience and interact with the world from the point of view of a baby.

5. Unrest VR Creators: Jennifer Brea, Amaury La Burthe UK, USA, France / 2017 / UK Premiere Age Recommendation: 13+ An immersive journey intro director Jen Brea’s experience of an invisible illness, ME (myalgic encephalomyelitis), contrasting the solitary confinement of a bedroom world with the kinetic freedom of an inner dreamscape.

Meet the Maker: Join Francesca Panetta and Nicole Jackson on Saturday 10 June at 12:00.

Meet the Maker: Join Jennifer Brea on Saturday 10 June at 11:00.

See Unrest in the Film Programme on Friday 09 June at 17:15 and Sunday 11 June at 15:15.

2. Future Aleppo (Festival Commission) Creators: Alex Pearson, Marshmallow Laser Feast UK, Turkey / 2017 / World Premiere Age Recommendation: 13+ As bombs fell on Aleppo, 13-year-old Mohammed lovingly built paper versions of his city’s fallen landmarks. Explore Mohammed’s interactive paper model, or enter VR to walk the streets of a lifesize version of the model, enriched with recordings of Mohammed’s stories and memories of the city.

A Sheffield Doc/Fest commission, in partnership with FACT, supported by Arts Council England.

Meet the Maker: Join Alex Pearson on Monday 12 June at 12:00.

Associated Talk: Alternate Realities Summit, Sunday 11 June at 10:00.

3. Munduruku: The Fight to Defend the Heart of the Amazon Creators: Grace Boyle, James Manisty UK, Brazil / 2017 / European Premiere Age Recommendation: 13+ Combining cutting edge virtual reality filmmaking and multi-sensory storytelling, immerse yourself in the lives and struggle of the Munduruku indigenous people deep in the heart of the Amazon rainforest.

Meet the Maker: Join Grace Boyle on Wednesday 14 June at 12:00.

4. In My Shoes: Intimacy Creator: Jane Gauntlett UK / 2017 / World Premiere Age Recommendation: 16+ A 360° experience (for two people) which explores human connection. Put aside your inhibitions and let strangers guide you through their impromptu, unconventional, and intense moments of intimacy.

6. Blindfold Creators: Navid Khonsari, Vassiliki Khonsari USA / 2017 / World Premiere Age Recommendation: 18+ Remove your blindfold to find yourself in Iran’s Evin Prison. Navigate moral choices in this visceral interactive experience that unveils the ever present human rights violations against journalists.

Warning: Distressing Content Meet the Maker: Join Vassiliki Khonsari on Tuesday 13 June at 16:00.

7. Trafficked Creators: Owain Rich, Charlie Newland UK, Mexico / 2016 / UK Premiere Age Recommendation: 18+ Based on interviews conducted with ‘Maria’, a woman who spent eight years in forced prostitution after being taken from her home in Nicaragua, Trafficked allows you to step into Maria’s shoes and face the reality of trafficking and forced prostitution first hand.

Meet the Maker: Join Charlie Newland on Sunday 11 June at 13:00.

8. DeathTolls Experience Creators: Ali Eslami Iran, Netherlands / 2016 / UK Premiere Age Recommendation: 16+ A virtual journey from the refugee crisis in Europe to the bloodbath in Syria, placing the dry ‘data reality’ of the news in an emotional perspective.

Meet the Maker: Join Ali Eslami on Saturday 10 June at 15:00.

Meet the Maker: Join Jane Gauntlett on Tuesday 13 June at 14:00.

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Virtual Reality Portal on Tudor Square

Fri 09 June / 12:00 – 20:00 | Sat 10 June – Wed 14 June / 10:00 – 20:00

1. Chasing Coral: The VR Experience Creator: Jeff Orlowski USA / 2016 / European Premiere Age Recommendation: Suitable for all ages This adventurous underwater VR experience by filmmaker Jeff Orlowski follows Zackery Rago, a passionate scuba diver and researcher, as he documented the unprecedented 2016 coral bleaching event at the Great Barrier Reef.

See Chasing Coral in the Film Programme on Monday 12 June at 18:15 and Tuesday 13 June at 09:30.

2. Planet Creator: Momoko Seto France / 2017 / World Premiere Age Recommendation: Suitable for all ages In a world in ruins, only fungi and mold grow in the middle of gigantic dried insects bodies. When a weather change occurs, rain irrigates the arid planet and floods it gradually. In the water springs an ecosystem, populated by giant carnivorous tadpoles.

Meet the Maker: Join executive producer François Martin Saint Léon on Monday 12 June at 14:30 at the Doc/Fest Exchange on Tudor Square.

3. Beethoven’s Fifth Creators: Jessica Brillhart UK, USA / 2017 / European Premiere Age Recommendation: 13+ A journey into interstellar space with a performance of Beethoven’s “Fifth Symphony, First Movement” by the Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen.

Meet the Maker: Join Jessica Brillhart in conversation with Resh Sidhu on Tuesday 13 June at 14:30 at the Doc/Fest Exchange on Tudor Square.

Associated Talk: Alternate Realities Summit, Sunday 11 June at 10:00.

4. Navajo Nation Creator: Jessica Brillhart USA / 2017 / World Premiere Age Recommendation: 13+ Featuring four vignettes of Navajo life, each extends from a scene of a sunrise over Monument Valley.

The experiences in the Virtual Reality Portal are showing at specific time slots. See page 1 for booking information.

Meet the Maker: Join Jessica Brillhart in conversation with Resh Sidhu on Tuesday 13 June at 14:30 at the Doc/Fest Exchange on Tudor Square.

Associated Talk: Alternate Realities Summit, Sunday 11 June at 10:00.

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Virtual Reality Campfire at Upper Chapel

Fri 09 June / 12:00 – 20:00 | Sat 10 June – Wed 14 June / 10:00 – 20:00

1. Mamie’s Dream Creator: Mary Matheson Sierra Leone / 2016 / UK Premiere Age Recommendation: 13+ Filmed in Sierra Leone, Mamie narrates her struggle against forced Female Genital Mutilation.

Meet the Maker: Join Mary Matheson on Saturday 10 June at 12:00 at the Doc/Fest Exchange on Tudor Square.

2. Spirit Robot Creator: Jonathan Dotse Ghana / 2017 / UK Premiere Age Recommendation: 13+ Spirit Robot captures the dynamism and ambition of the Chale Wote Street Art Festival in Accra. The festival is driving an art renaissance in the city’s public spaces.

Meet the Maker: Join Jonathan Dotse on Wednesday 14 June at 11:00 at the Doc/Fest Exchange on Tudor Square.

3. Step to the Line Creator: Ricardo Laganaro USA, Brazil / 2017 / European Premiere Age Recommendation: 13+ Shot entirely on location in maximum security prisons, Step to the Line aims to provoke a transformation in the spectator’s eyes about prisoners, the prison system, and even themselves.

Meet the Maker: Join Ricardo Laganaro on Sunday 11 June at 12:00 at the Doc/Fest Exchange on Tudor Square.

4. Yeh Ballet Creator: Sooni Taraporevala India / 2017 / World Premiere Age Recommendation: 13+ Ballet isn’t only for the rich. Discover two boys from Mumbai following their dreams of being the principal ballet dancers in big American companies, which take them from the slums of India to the USA. Meet the Maker: Join Creative Director Zain Memon on Sunday 11 June at 15:30 at the Doc/Fest Exchange on Tudor Square.

5. Fossil Hunting in the Gobi Creator: Erin Chapman, Jason Drakeford USA / 2016 / UK Premiere Age Recommendation: 13+ Set out across the sands of Asia’s largest desert with legendary explorer Roy Chapman Andrews. This documentary transports viewers back to the 1920s through the unique use of archival material.

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Interactive at Millennium Gallery Fri 09 June / 12:00 – 17:00 Sat 10 June / 10:00 – 17:00

Sun 11 June / 11:00 – 16:00 Mon 12 June / 10:00 – 17:00 & 18:00 – 20:00

Tue 13 June / 10:00 – 20:00 Wed 14 June / 10:00 – 20:00

1. Borders Creator: Gonzalo Alvarez USA / 2016 / World Premiere Age Recommendation: Suitable for all ages A political art game simulating the dangers Mexican immigrants face crossing the border. Death is permanent, leaving behind a skeleton in the Mexican desert for future players to see.

Meet the Maker: Join co-creator and lead developer Genaro Vallejo Reyes on Friday 09 June at 12:00.

2. These Memories Won’t Last Creator: Stu Campbell Australia / 2015 / UK Premiere Age Recommendation: Suitable for all ages Interactive webcomic These Memories Won’t Last tells the true story of an ageing grandfather who suffers from dementia. As his memories of the past and present blur, he questions the value of memory altogether.

3. Lawren Harris: Where the Universe Sings Creator: Marty Flanagan Canada / 2016 / European Premiere Age Recommendation: Suitable for all ages Peel back the layers of Lawren Harris’s paintings to reveal the places and processes that led to the creation of his most prominent artwork, all through the lens of augmented reality.

4. Tell Me Your Secrets Creator: Michael Orwell UK / 2016 / World Premiere Age Recommendation: Suitable for all ages An interactive graphic novel that describes a desperate scientific mission during WWII which started Britain’s enduring alliance with the USA. Tell Me Your Secrets imagines the consequences had the meetings ended differently.

Meet the Maker: Join Michael Orwell on Friday 09 June at 13:00.

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5. Wikileaks: A Love Story Creator: Anna Ridler UK / 2016 / World Premiere Age Recommendation: Suitable for all ages Mining WikiLeaks to find an unlikely story of love in the workplace, this installation uses data from real emails between two people to construct a romance from being in love to falling apart.

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Meet the Maker: Join Anna Ridler on Monday 12 June at 13:00.

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9. White Spots Creator: Jacqueline Hassink, Richard Vijgen Netherlands / 2016 / UK Premiere Age Recommendation: Suitable for all ages Visualise the invisible electromagnetic cloud that we live in and find a way out through the White Spots app or use the White Spots world map to travel to places off the grid near you.

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Meet the Maker: Join Marc Serpa Francoeur on Monday 12 June at 16:00.

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8. The World in Ten Blocks Creator: Robinder Uppal, Marc Serpa Francoeur Canada / 2016 / International Premiere Age Recommendation: Suitable for all ages An interactive web documentary that explores the diversity of Toronto’s Bloorcourt neighbourhood through the stories of its immigrant small business owners.

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7. My Grandmother’s Lingo Creators: Gina McKeon, Boris Etingof, Angelina Joshua, Jake Duczynski Australia / 2016 / European Premiere Age Recommendation: Suitable for all ages An online interactive documentary that uses voice-activated technology, animation, and gaming to tell the story of Angelina Joshua, a young Aboriginal woman from Northeast Arnhem Lan.

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Meet the Maker: Join producer David Oppenheim on Tuesday 13 June at 12:00.

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6. The Space We Hold Creators: Patricia Lee, Chris Kang, Tiffany Hsiung Canada / 2017 / World Premiere Age Recommendation: Suitable for all ages A direct provocation to bear witness to the testimonies of three grandmothers – former “comfort women” who are among the oldest living survivors of militarised sexual violence in the world today.

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DOOM ROOM

Sat 10 June / 20:00 – 23:00 / Theatre Delicatessen Sun 11 June / 11:00 – 14:00 & 17:00 – 22:00 / Theatre Delicatessen Mon 12 June / 11:00 – 14:00 / Theatre Delicatessen

Alternate Realities Summit Morning Session: Reflections

Sun 11 June / 10:00 / Crucible Studio

Afternoon Session: Togetherness Sun 11 June / 14:00 / Crucible Studio

Director: Jesper Dalgaard Denmark / 2016 / UK Premiere A boundary-defying virtual reality experience and live performance. In the depths of an abandoned department store, you are invited to put on a blindfold and begin a guided meditation where you are transported to the afterlife. Part technological wizardry, part heart-stopping live event, DOOM ROOM is not to be missed.

Contains scenes of an extreme graphic nature that some viewers may find disturbing.

Join the world’s best interactive makers to explore how digital storytelling pushes us to better understand ourselves and the world. Featuring the creative collective Anagram, Google’s Jessica Brillhart, virtual reality studio Marshmallow Laser Feast, and many other multimedia artists featured in the Exhibition.

Tickets: £10 available at sheffdocfest.com

Tickets: £30/£25 per session available at sheffdocfest.com

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Image © Stuart Campbell

Download the free EyeJack app from App Store or Google Play to augment this image. Once on the app, choose Prosthetic Reality, then Launch AR. 21MB download for app; 180MB download for Prostethic Reality book.