David Olusoga launched the immersive storytelling project StoryTrails ahead of its U.K.-wide tour during Sheffield DocFest 2022.<\/p>\n
\u201cStoryTrails is something I really care about because it\u2019s about reminding ourselves of those places that are not just special to us, but special to previous generations,\u201d said Olusoga. \u201cThe power of using new technologies to imprint stories from the past onto place, onto geographically specific points on the globe is hugely exciting. And, it\u2019s happening right here in Sheffield and across the U.K. in 2022.\u201d<\/p>\n
On July 1, the project, part of UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK, opens in Omagh, the first of 15 stops around the U.K., which will also include Dundee, Swansea, Blackpool and Lincoln. A team of 50 emerging creatives were trained by StoryFutures Academy, the National Centre for Immersive Storytelling, and then created the project, bringing together diversity and innovation.<\/p>\n
Centered around each location\u2019s local library and on the streets of the towns themselves, the StoryTrails live events feature digital experiences that allow people to experience their town in a new way through the magic of AR and VR. For each location, bespoke AR trails have been created featuring cine film and video home movie footage and photography from the BBC and British Film Institute and local and national archives.<\/p>\n
There will also be a physical installation unique to each town and viewed on a cycloramic cinema screen set up inside the libraries. Immersive virtual maps of the towns have been created using 3D scans of the local buildings, people, objects and areas, telling stories of people and places.<\/p>\n
StoryTrails will run through September 18 and culminates in a new film presented by Olusoga that will screen in U.K. cinemas and BBC iPlayer. The StoryTrails app, AR story trails and immersive maps will be available throughout 2022.<\/p>\n
Professor James Bennett, director of StoryFutures and StoryTrails, said: \u201cStoryTrails brings together augmented reality, virtual reality and immersive cinema to communities across the country, revealing untold stories in places where we\u2019ve never been before. One thousand stories, 15 locations, four types of immersive technologies put in the hands of 50 new creatives to bring those stories to life. StoryTrails is about getting people to experience local stories through new technology.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ben Luxford, head of audiences at BFI, said: \u201cStoryTrails is like nothing I\u2019ve experienced before, in terms of a truly immersive use of archive. It\u2019s incredibly exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n
Martin Green CBE, chief creative officer at UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK, said: \u201cStoryTrails is one of ten groundbreaking UNBOXED projects taking place in 2022 that demonstrate the power of creative collaboration across science, technology and the arts to create extraordinary and never-seen-before public experiences. StoryTrails uses cutting-edge technology to offer people the opportunity to hear about the places they live\u2014the stories of individuals and communities\u2014in a way that has not been done before.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
David Olusoga launched the immersive storytelling project StoryTrails ahead of its U.K.-wide tour during Sheffield DocFest 2022.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1033,"featured_media":18353,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pmpro_default_level":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[69],"tags":[6058,6289],"class_list":["post-18352","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-top-stories","tag-david-olusoga","tag-storytrails","pmpro-has-access"],"yoast_head":"\n