STORIES FEATURING INDIGENOUS DJ COLLECTIVE A TRIBE CALLED RED AND POLARMAN WILL PREMIERE AS PART OF THE DOCX PROGRAM
Toronto, March 21 – SESQUI, a revolutionary 360° cinematic experience, announces two of its virtual reality experiences from the mobile app MERIDIAN VR, will premiere at the 2017 Hot Docs Film Festival. The stories will be part of the interactive DocX program, hosted at Toronto’s Brookfield Place, from April 27 – May 7, 2017.
Hot Docs is North America’s largest documentary film festival, featuring a selection of over 200 films from Canada and around the world. The third annual DocX program showcases the best in immersive and interactive content, with free installations and live events, running throughout the Festival.
MERIDIAN VR experiences premiering at the Festival include:
- A TRIBE CALLED RED: INDIAN CITY 360° remix – Filmed at Toronto’s Fort York, the interactive video from the acclaimed Indigenous DJ collective uses gradient audio to mix traditional and contemporary sounds, with a dance battle between hip-hop and powwow dancers.
- POLARMAN – The brave, bold and benevolent Polarman is Canada’s real-life superhero. The piece tells the origin story of Iqaluit’s beloved, masked anti-bullying crusader through an interactive mix of 360° video and comic illustrations by Canadian artists Daniel Day, Leisha-Marie Riddel and Andrew Qappik.
“We’re thrilled to premiere these stories at the Hot Docs Film Festival this year,” said Joel McConvey, SESQUI Director of Digital. “MERIDIAN VR is about pushing the boundaries of participatory storytelling and immersing Canadians in a virtual world told by some of Canada’s most talented artists and creators. DocX is the perfect premiere platform for us, as it celebrates innovation in filmmaking and storytelling. We look forward to sharing this experience with festival-goers.”
The full MERIDIAN VR experience includes six original, interactive stories of Canadians shaping their world in creative ways. The free mobile app launches May 2017 for OS X and Android, and for viewing on Oculus Rift, Samsung Gear VR, Google Cardboard and Google Daydream. Download the app through Apple App Store, Google Play and Oculus Store.
To learn more about MERIDIAN VR visit www.sesqui.ca/vr.
ABOUT SESQUI – THE FUTURE IS ALL AROUND USTM
With a vision to see and understand Canada in new and inspiring ways: SESQUI is a revolutionary 360° cinematic journey into the heart of Canada. SESQUI aims to engage millions of Canadians through its full dome and virtual reality content, online activities and learning programs that showcase the best in Canadian arts and innovation. SESQUI is a Canada 150 Signature Initiative poised to lead celebrations in Canadian communities this year. www.sesqui.ca #SESQUI2017.
MEDIA INQUIRIES
Hibaq Ali, Marketing Coordinator, SESQUI
hibaq@SESQUI.ca | 416.455.8326