Today, Viacom NEXT, in partnership with NYC Media Lab, have announced the 2017 Viacom Music + VR Fellowship with the aim of building music-based virtual reality (VR) content.
Six graduate and undergraduate student fellows are recruited from universities in the NYC Media Lab consortium. They will then be tasked with producing individual VR experiences centered on a piece of music from Viacom’s library.
The participants will be mentored by Viacom executives and industry innovators, whilst gaining access to Viacom’s VR-ready computer systems, HTC Vive’s and other head-mounted displays.
The 2017 class of fellows are: Corey Bertelsen, NYU Game Center; Danny Dang, Parsons School of Design BFA Design & Technology; Juan Jose Egúsquiza, NYU Interactive Telecommunications Program; Or Fleisher, NYU Interactive Telecommunications Program; Mikei Huang, Parsons School of Design MFA Design & Technology; and Chao Jin, NYU Game Center.
“Viacom is working to pioneer original VR content that transforms fan and artist engagement in music, said Mac Lotze, Virtual Reality Producer at Viacom NEXT and co-leader of the fellowship program in a statement. “We’re excited to welcome these creative young talents to Viacom and continue exploring the amazing potential of this medium with them.”
“We are thrilled to continue our work with Viacom this summer and push the boundaries of what’s possible with virtual reality storytelling,” said Justin Hendrix, Executive Director of NYC Media Lab. “As virtual and augmented reality technologies advance, the ability to quickly produce high quality experiences will grow more important for media corporations.”
The eight-week programme runs from June to August, and culminates in a showcase at Viacom’s headquarters in New York where the fellows’ experiences will be demoed live.
Viacom Music + VR Fellowship is now in its second year with the first programme producing five VR experiences. THese included Rosalind Paradis’ Park Walk, Bryan Collinsworth’s Room 1206: Every guest has a story and Call Time: It’s your final act, turn back the clock to find your killer!, by Michelle Senteio and Sam Von Ehre.
VRFocus will continue its coverage of Viacom Next, reporting back with the latest announcements.