Immersion Nation Podcast

This week we have not one but 4 truly phenomenal guests. This is the first part of a round table discussion on immersive entertainment and its relationship to real experiences and the real world. Caroline Murphy of 'Incantrix Productions', Jessica Creane of 'IKANTKOAN Games', Justin Fyles of 'Any One Thing', and Risa Puno of 'The Privilege of Escape' guide us in exactly the kind of thought-provoking, assumption challenging and nuanced conversation that we here at Immersion Nation think is vital for the beginning of any cultural movement.
The topics of identity, empathy, agency, trust, and diversity frame the dynamic perspectives of these creators. They work together to explore the intricacies inherent in creating experiences of depth and transformative potential for their audiences. Finally, the topic of what the future might hold for immersive entertainment speaks to both exciting and perilous potential for a world where immersive experiences are everywhere.
Selected Links:

• Caroline Murphy
• Incantrix Productions
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
• Jessica Creane
• IKANTKOAN Games
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
• Justin Fyles
• Any One Thing
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
• Risa Puno
• The Privilege of Escape
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Vimeo

Mentioned:
Odyssey Works
Show Notes:

• Introductions [1:59]
• Why Is immersive So impactful? [4:02]
• Transformation and a self-selecting audience [6:13]
• Removing adversarial context, choices, and identity [7:47]
• What happens when immersive is everywhere? Self-examination, and diversity [11:52]
• Daily immersive, scale, and intimacy [13:46]
• Tension between documentation and over systematization [16:10]
• Diversity, setting the tone, and developing trust with an audience [18:00]
• An airplane, a brand, and the 3rd rail of social justice issues [20:35]
• Audience psychology in immersive experiences [24:30]
• Designing Internal Experience and what’s next [28:50]

“Diversity of experiences and diversity of thought is so, so important. I think we’re at a place right now, where the more space we make right now, the more space there is going to be in the long run. We have the possibility of having a really exponential impact on that by taking great care” -Jessica Creane

Scott Cramton is the founder of American Immersion Theater with over 1,000 immersive shows under his belt. Over the course of 15 years Scott has developed and refined socially immersive experiences.

Scott was born with a cleft palate and -naturally- chose to act professionally. Often, one’s greatest weakness has potential to become their greatest strength. Scott’s path led him to creating an audacious and counterintuitive way of encouraging others to communicate and connect through acting.

Scott’s -and American Immersion Theater’s- staple is the LARP-esque murder mystery dinner. Though, they also perform princess parties, superhero parties, feigned fame stunts, and a myriad of other events that defy a consistent label referred to as atmospheric entertainment.
Make it Immersive:
Willy Wonka [32:35]

Selected links from episode:

• American Immersion Theater
• Princess Parties
• Super Hero Parties
• Famous for a Day
• Atmospheric Entertainment
• Meow Wolf
• Sleep no more
• Act with AIT
• On acting podcast
• Buzzfeed: Famous for a day video
• Robert Reich
• Boy from oz
• The play goes wrong show
• Willy Wonka taste it room

Show Notes:

• About Scott & what he does [1:35]
• How many shows? [3:46]
• Murder Mystery tour through Europe & Middle East [5:03]
• Actors training, social immersion, and rethinking princess parties [7:07]
• Scott’s fictional word + Wonka marketing, quaker oats [12:40]
• What drew Scott to Immersion and his “Spite-Bulb” moment [15:28]
• Being decimated and catching up on acting skills [20:25]
• Creative impetus behind creating immersive spaces + screwing with actors, inception of MMC [22:50]
• “Wolverine” on stage, Boy from oz & the turning point, It should all be interactive [25:58]
• How to fake it on broadway, Immersive experience idea [29:19]
• Make it Immersive: Willy Wonka [32:35]
• Willy Wonka fan theories [37:18]
• Asking Mike TV about the fan theories [39:03]
• Brief nuts and bolts thoughts on selecting immersive worlds [41:15]
• Scott’s podcast & where can you find him [44:44]

Welcome to the 3rd and final part of this roundtable discussion on immersive entertainment and it impacts on the real world.
Joining us we have Caroline Murphy, Chief Creative Officer of Incantrix Productions. Jessica Creane, founder of IKANTKOAN Games. Justin Fyles, Co-founder and Managing Director of Any One Thing. And Risa Puno, creator of The Privilege of Escape and Creative Time’s first open call artist.
In this episode, we push out to the edges of reality and ask the question... What happens when we’re all creating immersive experiences for -and with- each other? When the line between the hyperreal and the surreal begins to blur into daily life?
I should say, it might be a little tricky to jump in here if you haven’t heard part 1 and or part 2 because here, the concrete cadence of the conversation begins to transmute into the white-hot liquid theory around this increasingly immersive world we live in.
Last time, we left off wondering how empathy, of all things, could be a destructive force. Well now, we talk about that- and how to avoid it. How to lend yourself to a shared moment in a way that respects the unimaginable experience of another person. All that, and so much more.
Selected Links:

• Caroline Murphy
• Incantrix Productions
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Sinking Ship Creations
    • Calculations
• Jessica Creane
• IKANTKOAN Games
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
    
    
• Justin Fyles
• Any One Thing
  • Souvenir
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
• Risa Puno
• The Privilege of Escape
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Vimeo

In 2005, Jeromy Barber moved from New York City to a small town in Texas.

If Jeromy's life was a screenplay, and I was editing? I would probably advise the writer to make it just a touch less formulaic. It is fantastic. Jeromy has trained with the comedy monolith, Second City. Founded the improv focused Beta Theater in Houston and, of course, owns and operates Dinolion, a quote “Creative video house” which rocks the tagline “Projects we love with people we love.” and does everything from video marketing to, of course, immersive experience design.

My read on The Dinolion brand, as a creative expression of Jeromy’s style, is bright and brash and I think can only really be described as brilliantly refined chaos. But that’s just my read on it, go check out their reel for yourself after the show; also, fantastic.

Jeromy’s way of thinking about the creation of immersive experiences is incredibly innovative. So, again for you practicing or aspiring immersive creators out there, these two episodes will hopefully likely spark the same kind of curiosity and excitement that I walked away with. And for the immersive fans, adventurers, connoisseurs? Have you ever heard of a one-person immersive experience in a plane?
Once again, fantastic.

Selected Links:

Dinolion
-Facebook
-Instagram
The Rabbit Cage
Beta Theater
Bill Callahan
David lynch
Festival of Disruption
Transcendental Meditation
Second City
The Steam Powered Hour
Pollok Texas
Lonely girl 15
Cassie is Watching
Alternate Reality Game
Overlook film festival
The Axelrad Beer Garden

Show Notes:

Jeromy’s fictional world [3:08]
What is Dinolion? [7:16]
The path from video to immersive [9:25]
New York to Texas & discovering ARG [10:42]
Consuming to create in a new medium [13:25]
Starting with easter eggs [14:34]
Cross-discipline: Video and immersive [17:18]
Video in immersive experience [19:14]
Spoilers and marketing for immersive productions [21:33]
The ONLY person who has said the marketing is easy and the complexity ceiling
[23:31]
The golden ratio of immersive: post-experience interest is a champagne problem.
[26:23]
The draw to the haunt genera [28:14]
The inception of The Rabbit Cage [30:29]

A door has opened with the rise of immersive experience. Immersive experience can be fun, and wondrous, mind bending, but it can also aid incredible empathy in a way that very few other things can.
The privilege of escape is an escape room and an experience that uses this fact to address the real world problems of privilege and social inequity. Risa Puno, is a new york based artist that, in collaboration with creative time, has pioneered a new front, a new world of potential, for what immersive experiences can be.

References & Selected Links:

The Privilege of Escape
Risa Puno
@risapuno
On twitter
On Vimeo

Creative time
-Sugar Sphinx
-Pigeon lights performance

The Onassis foundation
The olympic tower building
On Post Game Frothing

Show Notes:

Fictional world for adventures [2:43]
•PSA: We don’t wrap back around to that- the rest of the conversation was just too good! [5:53]
•Creative Time and What is the Privilege of Escape? [6:04]
•Why an escape room? [8:43]
•Nuance in name and idea [11:52]
•Communicating privilege through adrenaline and context [13:57]
•What is the experience like? [16:37]
•The setting- now with spaceship hvac! [19:35]
•The depth of the space [22:44]
•Post game debrief [24:22]
•Games that show who we are [26:11]
•The actors in the art [29:45]
•You are the message [33:11]
•Risa undercover- getting shut down [35:13]
•Being right doesn’t matter Power dynamics feeling only 99% sure [36:10]
•Awareness of one’s privilege [41:05]
•Acknowledging one’s privilege [42:27]
•Using the frothiness [43:24]