Considered by most people to be famously polluted and unpleasant, the rivers of New York City are nonetheless the only waterways available to many citizens of a city dominated by high-rise apartment blocks. A project by Heineken and documented by Tribeca Studios is offering New Yorkers the chance to swim safely in the city’s rivers.
Floating and Idea: The +POOL Story tells of a project to create a water-filtering, floating swimming pool that allows citizens of New York to actually swim in the rivers of New York. The documentary offers a look at the history of the rivers, including the historical floating bathhouses of the 1900s. The aim is to attract attention and funding for the project to create a floating, olympic-sized swimming pool that can filter out contaminants to create water suitable for swimming in a pool accessible to anyone. The film and the +POOL are part of an initiative by Heineken called The Cities Project, which aims to improve communities in cities all over the world.
Alongside the documentary is an interactive 360-degree virtual reality (VR) film that lets VR users find out what the experience of swimming in the +POOL when it is completed. The 360-degree film was produced by renowned VR content creators Tribeca Studios and lets users find out what it would be like to swim in a pool with views of the iconic New York City skyline.
“The short documentary and VR film bring + POOL’s remarkable story to life in new ways and raise awareness of how Heineken is helping + POOL reclaim the waters of New York City,” said Paula Weinstein, Executive Vice President of Tribeca Enterprises.
“The Cities Project by Heineken is all about raising awareness and providing support for innovative ideas for making great cities even greater,” said Raul Esquer, Brand Manager, Heineken USA. “This film not only shares the + POOL story in a new way in front of new audiences — it also showcases the many milestones that have already been reached, and what supporters can do to help get the project over the finish line.”
VRFocus will continue to bring you news on new 360-degree and VR projects as it becomes available.
