Crédits photos : NewImages Festival 2020, ABM Studio
For its third edition, NewImages Festival has a new format. Surfing on the wave of the virtual, a subject at the heart of its programme, the event has decided to let itself be carried along by the wind of hybrid. From 23 to 27 September, see you at the Forum des images in Paris, but also online!
A third edition reinvented
Digital creation and virtual worlds
“Images should not only be watched and analyzed: now, they should be lived, felt and palpable.” This is the motto adopted by NewImages Festival. Created in 2018, the now recognised festival in the XR community highlights new content and creative processes. For the past three years, the event has focused on bringing virtual worlds to life and discovering them. An ambition that echoes the current context, where virtual worlds are taking their card from the game!
Scheduled for June, this third edition had to be postponed and redesigned to cope with the current measures. But it took more than that to scare the NewImages team! It was the ideal opportunity to reinvent itself and offer an experience that stands out from the rest. From September 23rd to 27th, whether you’re a professional or just curious, come and see a hybrid edition: both physical and online!
Disrupt, discover, democratize
Since its first edition, NewImages Festival has claimed to be at the forefront of the XR industry. Always on the lookout for new innovations and new formats, it brings to the spotlight digital creations, each one more surprising than the last, each one coming from the deepest and most inaccessible abysses, all with a single goal in mind: “to spread new techniques and make new forms of creation accessible, enabling everyone to make them their own.“
It is in this climate that NewImages Festival offers two programmes: one for the general public and Industry Days (23-25 September) for professionals. As in previous editions, the most curious and enthusiasts of immersive technologies will be able to dive into this disconcerting universe. The general public can enjoy XR experiences and live shows at the Forum des Images, but also under the Forum Canopy. A programme has also been specially concocted for young audiences (Ciné-philo, Sunday 27 September, from 8 years old). Last year, 11,000 people crowded into the various locations in Paris to explore the XR’s deep seabed.
A tide of immersive experiences and international conferences
Industry Days: a renewed success every year
NewImages Festival has joined the ocean of immersive events that take place every year all over the world. In particular through these professional days, called Industry Days. They offer a rich programme aimed at professionals operating in the XR industry sector.
These professional days are an opportunity to meet and exchange ideas between XR experts. It is also an opportunity to discover avant-garde projects and new digital creations! Since its foundation, the NewImages Festival has been committed to highlighting experiences that explore new formats.
The hybrid version, both IRL and online, allows all professionals to attend conferences to benefit from the expertise of leading players in the XR industry. Many experts are invited, including Fox Harrell (MIT), Colum Slevin (Facebook), Marc Petit (Epic Games), and many others. They also have access to the networking space to meet and exchange ideas, both real and virtual. These same experts, but also all the professionals who come to the festival, will be able to discover the projects registered in the XR Financing Market. This year, the investment market is taking on a 100% online form, to ensure that project leaders and decision-makers are put in touch with each other at all costs.
Photos credit: Pascal Aimar
Workshops to stimulate reflection
Professionals are also invited to participate in various workshops for reflection and practical application. 4 workshops are proposed around the creation of immersive experiences and virtuality in the field of culture. “How can virtual experiences and spaces enable museums and cultural venues to reach new audiences but also to develop new sources of income?“. This was the question asked during the workshop “Museums and virtual spaces: audiences and revenues” organised by ImmerseUK and moderated by Asha Easton.
One of these workshops was created in partnership with Laval Virtual. Entitled “Design of experience: Imagination – Conception of other realities”, it explains how to create an immersive experience based on our own feelings. Judith Guez, creator and director of the art and virtual reality festival Recto VRso, will be moderator, alongside Anaïs Bernard from UCO Angers. Judith is also taking part in a conference on the notions of the body and immersion. Alongside three other digital artists, she will question the place of the body in virtual reality experiences. A theme that is close to her heart and which was the subject of the latest virtual exhibition of Recto VRso.
A double online access for this new edition
In view of the current health context, and to enable all XR professionals to take part in the festival, NewImages has set up an online programme. Conferences, pitching sessions, workshops and special evenings will be accessible on the festival website both live and replay. A virtual space is also available on VRChat, in partnership with VRrOOm. This will be the networking space for professionals. Visitors will also be able to discover the whole selection of immersive experiences of 2020. These experiences are also accessible IRL, at the Forum des Halles.
