RIGA IFF GOES VR

RIGA IFF GOES VR INSPIRATIONAL TALKS AND LECTURES

Virtual reality is a fascinating and rapidly growing audiovisual medium that expands the possibilities and boundaries of cinematic language. It is no less than a film festival’s mission to foster and advance new approaches to VR storytelling that employ this language.

Riga International Film Festival and the interactive production house Story Hub are partnering with Magnetic Latvia to host RIGA IFF GOES VR – a regionally unique space for dialogue and co-operation among VR and film professionals as well as other members of the creative industries with different fields of expertise; for virtual reality is not just a technology, but also a new way of filmmaking as well as an art form, a communications instrument, an entertainment platform, and a valuable educational tool.

FRIDAY, 18 OCT.

RIGA IFF GOES VR Set of four inspirational lectures on the basics of VR storytelling Sara Lisa Vogl, Jessica Driscoll, Mikkel Keldorf, Sonja Bozic Moderator – Eva Brazdžionytė 10:00–15:00 Cafe Film Noir Free admission

Sara Lisa Vogl Germany

Graduated with honours in Communication Arts and Interactive Media from Design Factory International in Hamburg. Sara is a co-founder of the community VR Nerds and spent the early days of VR in 2014 with the Hamburg-based team co-creating experiences and engaging with the young community through a blog and YouTube videos. She has contributed to uniting and unlocking the potential of the European XR scene by co-founding the VR & AR incubator XRBASE.

Jessica Driscoll United Kingdom

VR Development director at the London based Cornerstone Partnership – a social enterprise that innovatively employs VR as a training tool to accelerate behaviour change. Jessica has worked as a producer on a variety of VR projects, including CGI dramas, and has also been part of BBC Connected studio, a product designed to stimulate disruptive near to mid-term innovation at scale, providing the environment and resources needed to pursue big, game-changing ideas and maximise successful transfer of technology, processes and ideas into live BBC output – both online and broadcast.

Sonja Bozic United States of America

Multi-award-winning filmmaker and professor. She has edited, directed, and produced a wide range of video forms that have been screened internationally, including at the Cannes Film Festival. Sonja currently teaches film editing at the New School, New York City, and transmedia at Montclair State University, New Jersey. She earned her Ph.D. in Transmedia Storytelling at Ohio University, where her transmedia research was nominated for the Trisolini Fellowship Award.

Eva Brazdžionytė (moderator) Lithuania

Film critic; often writes for the magazines Kino Raksti and Satori. Is especially interested in the phenomenon of auteur animation in the Latvian cinema scene, and a large part of her research has focused on the history of Latvian animation. An active member of the Latvian Animation Association.

Mikkel Keldorf Denmark

After completing his studies in journalism, Mikkel worked as a reporter in Shanghai covering Scandinavian business and politics in Asia. He has worked on numerous documentaries, organically embracing the medium of virtual reality – one of his latest, Beyond the Wall, has been screened at various film festivals, including CPH:DOX. He now runs his own company, Mikkel Keldorf Media, which delivers high-quality video productions for TV stations and private companies as well as documentaries.

MAGNETIC LATVIA HACKATHON RIGA IFF GOES VR

Fascinated by what VR can do? Come take part in the RIGA IFF GOES VR hackathon and put your tech skills, creative ideas, or cinematic knowledge to the test! All are equally needed and important for the creation of a successful VR experience.

Seeing that virtual reality is an impactful medium, we invite you to create a project that will help make a difference for kids and youth by rendering the learning process easy, exciting, and accessible to all. Come with your own idea or work on the challenges formulated by the local community. The assigned tasks cover a variety of topical themes and issues concerning accessible learning that can be solved by a corresponding VR experience. The tasks are not only well-crafted by professionals that know the respective field thoroughly, but also take into consideration the needs of the potential target audience of the project-to-be. You can participate in the hackathon with your own team or join one at the event.

The winning team will have the opportunity to attend the Digital Freedom Festival and pitch their idea to its audience and investors. DELFI will contribute to the prize fund by DELFI Plus subscriptions and advertising or articles worth of 1000 EUR to promote your project!

SATURDAY, 19 OCT.

RIGA IFF GOES VR Magnetic Latvia hackathon: creating educational VR content for children and youth Moderator – Edgars Simsons 10:00–10:00 (24 h) National Film School of the Latvian Academy of Culture For registered participants (See www.rigaiff.lv)

IR Trusted and respected for its skillful analytical journalism and innovative approaches, the weekly magazine IR is one of the leading media outlets in Latvia. Awarded for its articles, the independently owned magazine has steadily grown its reach to 70 000 readers every week. The magazine’s crafted task for hackathon participants will address the topic of understandably explaining the process of legislation and political decision-making.

The Autism Society of Latvia An active and innovative non-governmental community organisation that raises awareness and protects the rights and interests of those affected by autism spectrum disorder. The task provided by the Autism Society of Latvia will encourage hackathon participants to create an experience that would aid children and youth on the autism spectrum to explore an environment (for example, a new school) in VR before actually being there physically.

Latvian Nature Fund The mission of the Latvian Nature Fund is conservation of the diversity of the natural environment of Latvia. In order to carry this out, the fund works both on practical activities as well as community education. Naturally, the task for hackathon participants will challenge them to create a VR experience that would allow its users to grasp the importance of safeguarding the diversity of the natural world.

Žanis Lipke Memorial Well-hidden among the small streets of the island of Ķīpsala, the Žanis Lipke Memorial is located in the barn where Lipke hid Jews from the Nazi occupation regime in the 1940s. It now stands as a reminder and a symbol of courage and humanity – values that are a cornerstone of democratic and diverse societies. The task will challenge hackathon participants to create an experience that would allow its users to discover the diversity of contemporary Riga.

Latvian Dyslexia Association A non-governmental association that represents and protects the interests of those affected by dyslexia. The association also raises awareness about this not uncommon neurobiological disorder – this is important for faster diagnosis and to find solutions for inclusivity at schools and workplaces. The Latvian Dyslexia Association will challenge hackathon participants to work on a VR experience that could facilitate reading.

National Film Centre of Latvia The main supporter of RIGA IFF GOES VR and the main organisation in Latvia that manages budget funds for film production. The National Film Centre also takes an active role in promoting Latvian cinema both at home and abroad, as well as fosters numerous film education initiatives. Accordingly, the task formulated by the National Film Centre will address the topic of audiovisual education, aiming to use VR to teach users about Latvian films and their eventful history.

DELFI Campus Hosted by the largest Latvian news website, DELFI Campus is the largest platform of the exact sciences for students, their parents, and everyone who is captivated by this world. DELFI Campus is a platform for the exchange of ideas and information among pupils, students, and professionals from various scientific communities.

SHORT RIGA