Blackout uses new media to create a space of radical listening.

Blackout | VR Documentary
13 mins, premiered at Tribeca Storyscapes 2017

Set on the New York City subway, Blackout is a generative virtual reality documentary where the narrative is determined by who you approach and look at. You can walk around, lean against a pole, sit down next to the virtual passengers. When the train leaves the station, you discover you can hear their thoughts. The longer you listen the deeper you delve into their lives. Every experience is unique, and every train has different passengers.

The passengers were captured using volumetric filmmaking, combining cameras and depth sensors to create a live-action 3D model. Audio is long-form documentary interviews with over 50 New Yorkers from all walks of life.

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The film premiered in competition at Tribeca Storyscapes in 2017, and was supported by Cinereach, Tribeca New Media Fund, and the Knight Foundation.

Press
Routledge | Crafting Stories for Virtual Reality
Engadget | 'Blackout' is a VR love letter to NYC's subway riders 
Fast Company | These Filmmakers Are Immortalizing New Yorkers
BBC | Virtual reality: The hype, the problems and the promise