‘We are seeing a new maturity’: how ‘extended reality’ is coming of age at the Venice film festival

At the festival’s pioneering immersive section, a ‘seamless evolution’ of VR and mainstream film-making is revolutionising narrative

The future came early to this year’s Venice film festival as the event’s pioneering Venice Immersive (VI) section launched a day before the official opening gala. Based on the small island of Lazzaretto Vecchio, a short boat ride from the main festival site, VI points to a possible new direction for cinema with an eclectic programme of extended reality (XR) artworks. The mix of installations, videos and virtual worlds can look outlandish when compared with the other, more traditional pictures at the festival. But VI’s base at Venice reveals the event’s true parentage and core principles.

“Our mission, in holding this event at one of the biggest film festivals, has always been to build bridges between the cinema industry and the budding immersive community,” says Michel Reilhac, who established VI alongside co-curator Liz Rosenthal back in 2017. “This year, I feel that mission is being manifested.”

As evidence, Reilhac points to the fact that two veteran mainstream directors – The Bourne Identity’s Doug Liman and Conclave’s Edward Berger – have made the jump to XR projects selected for this year’s competition. By the same token, the immersive community have learned from conventional cinematic storytelling and are increasingly incorporating these lessons into their work.