The writing in Immerse’s “Publics” issue imaginatively and concretely address the potential discursive space of the public sphere — and the ways public art, digital art, AR and VR works fossilize and dislodge notions of interactivity, accessibility and permanence. Often, abstract ideas of audiences and the public are invoked to justify decisions in the content and the presentation of works. These pieces provide insights into the material and experiential realities of specific communities. They span a survey of social media archives of recent protest street projections in South America; highlights from a unique qualitative study on home users of VR headsets from the UK-based Virtual Realities; Immersive Documentary Encounters research group; and interviews with the collaborative creators of sound art installations, digital exhibitions, podcasts and a tool for “proxy protest.”
This themed issue is the first that I’ve shepherded from concept to publishing as the editor of Immerse. It’s been a joy to work with the longstanding editorial collective to dream up collaborations with writers, practitioners and scholars to spotlight the vital work that has been made and distributed outside the established film and exhibition festival systems. I worked for several years as a film festival programmer before joining the MIT Open Documentary Lab as a graduate student researcher, where I’m considering the media infrastructures of the international festival circuit. I am looking forward to further integrating that perspective with the ecstatic energy of celebrating the upcoming fifth anniversary of Immerse.
As Immerse transitions into a quarterly-themed format over 2021, we will continue to publish weekly pieces that will include ongoing coverage of the field. We hope that these contributions from new and returning voices spark new connections between the edges of technological innovation in emerging nonfiction forms and the political stakes of their circulation.
Abby Sun Editor, Immerse
On Publics
In the Light of Memory Surveying recent social media archives of street projections that subvert official narratives in South Americaimmerse.news
Ceremonial Complex An interview with Postcommodity on hacking soundscapes and Indigenous technological self-determinationimmerse.news
DM for Collabs I posted to Instagram as an aging robot — here are some responses I receivedimmerse.news
“You feel, in that moment, you are sitting next to them!”: Exploring audience responses to VR… by Mandy Rose & David Greenimmerse.news
Public by Proxy A roundtable conversation with the creators of A DIY Guide to Proxy Protest on disability rights and the politics of…immerse.news
This Concrete Pavement is Talking to Me Speculative non-fictions and Augmented Reality in public spaceimmerse.news
Augmented Audio Realities James T. Green adapts a talk given at UnionDocs’ 2020 Podcast School, exploring time and space in experiential storiesimmerse.news
“Chipping Away at the Earth” A conversation with Greg de Cuir Jr. on desktop cinema aesthetics, hand-made digital exhibitions and the metaverse nowimmerse.news
Ongoing Coverage
Collaboration, Process, and Acknowledging the Past Insights from six Sundance New Frontier artists featured on the “Brown Girls and the New Frontier” panelimmerse.news
Immersive Highlights 2020 26 creators, curators, and researchers recommend new immersive projects from last yearimmerse.news
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Immerse is an initiative of the MIT Open DocLab and receives funding from Just Films | Ford Foundation and the MacArthur Foundation. The Gotham Film & Media Institute is our fiscal sponsor. Learn more here. We are committed to exploring and showcasing emerging nonfiction projects that push the boundaries of media and tackle issues of social justice — and rely on friends like you to sustain ourselves and grow. Join us by making a gift today.