(from several weeks ago)
It was in necropolis, of all places, in the middle of London, that I was made to feel alive and living in a refugee camp in Jordan.
12 year old Sidra, from Za’atari camp in Jordan was my guide. She took me to her school, showed me her home, introduced me to her family. Showed me for all but 15 minutes of what her every day life was like.
I am at the ‘Feelies’, a virtual reality film experience with extra sensory input of smells, touch and more at the Shuffle Festival in Mile End. This year the festival is exploring ‘Movement, Migration and Place’ and it celebrates film, storytelling, food, music, comedy and much more.
Feelies made me question, not simply what reality is in itself, but more so what reality is for other people. It is a completely immersive experience, which allows you to step into the life of somebody else. You are given a headset which allows you to look around, 360 degrees, as if you are actually in the film that you are being shown. Whilst seeing there are technician enhancing the experience through giving smells, giving you items to touch and moving you around I even felt the rain from Jordan splash me.
For just 15 minutes I was with Sidra in her world and walked with her. I walked around the home to 84,000 refugees. I saw the sun set. People playing football. Visited schools. For 15 minutes I was far, far away. This was much more than just a film.
“We’ve just started to scratch the surface of the true power of virtual reality. It’s not a video game peripheral — it connects humans to other humans in a profound way.”
Just as soon as I stepped in. I stepped out. Left Sidra behind and found myself back in the place of the dead.
1 comment:
You can watch the film here: https://vrse.com/watch/id/21/
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