We've Partnered with Google's Daydream Team

The sun has finally come out on the East Coast, and in celebration of nature and her generosity, Tribeca Film Institute’s Interactive department is partnering with Google’s Daydream team to bring you a new Immersive Films Program focused on the ‘5 Elements of Nature.’ The partnership is twofold: an incubator coupled with funding. The selected projects will receive technical support, mentorship, funding as well as a distribution track that we are excited to announce as soon as the heat kicks in mid-to-late summer.

We will be supporting 5 VR projects that take an element of nature and craft a story around or about it. There is no limit to the story in terms of genre, aesthetic, or delivery aside from it being rooted in one of the 5 marvelous natural elements (Earth, Water, Wind, Fire, or Space). We are looking for projects that interact with the  environment as a way to tackle critical issues or explore different myths, fables and wonders.

We also seek projects that push the medium of VR and 360 environments to expand our understanding of the world. We are looking for strong teams made up of various talents, and creators whose voices are underrepresented in the media and the VR space — both emerging and seasoned. We want to celebrate the perspectives of communities who are sometimes seen on screen, but seldom represented behind the camera.

With all this in mind, we are inviting teams to submit a well thought-out concept of what they hope to create given the time period and the provided grant. We encourage creators who are considering applying to build rigorous teams with the right talents to create seminal pieces of work.

The selected teams will receive $40,000 to build the project, participation in a two-day training lab, technical support from the Google team, a Yi Halo camera to use for the duration of the program, and unlimited stitching via Jump. We will also conduct check-in sessions throughout the production to ensure all teams have the necessary tools and are heading in the right direction.

Are you a bold creator with a mission to break through the status quo? Are you ready to bring your unique perspective and wealth of experience to the world of VR and media at large? Are you ready to step out of the comfort zone to discover secrets about our world and then deliver them through a VR narrative? Are you excited about the potential of VR? Then check out our Open Call.

And finally, as we gear up to unveil other parts of this partnership, if you have a finished VR piece that fits the above description but does not necessarily align in terms of focusing on the elements of nature, please reach out to us. We would love to have a conversation with you about what is coming next.

For questions and inquiries, please contact Zeina Abi Assy, Program Manager at zassy@tfiny.org.