Surround Stories Lab

Project partners: Live Cinema UK and University of Leeds

A fulldome is an immersive dome-based video projection environment. There is an incredibly wide range of possibilities for how this technology can be used, from screening 360-degree films for collective viewing, to live dance and music performances which interact with projected visuals.

Live Cinema UK’s Surround Stories Lab project explored how different stories can be told in a fulldome and how access to these environments can be widened. The project has been informed by academics at the University of Leeds.

The project focused on developing four unique story experiences for a fulldome environment and exploring the development of a permanent fulldome space in Yorkshire. The XR Stories funding also supported a temporary portable fulldome, which enabled artists to explore the implications of fulldome spaces for the first time in the region. The temporary fulldome was tested on various Yorkshire audiences, including XPLOR, Bradford Council and Leeds 2023.

Live Cinema UK aims to open England’s first permanent fulldome space, dedicated to cultural development and exhibition, in Yorkshire. This R&D project enabled important research into how this can be successfully achieved in the future and has demonstrated the significance of this technology to key stakeholders in the region.

Lisa Brook, artistic director and CEO of Live Cinema UK, says:

“Surround Stories Lab has given us a greater understanding of the possibilities around interactivity in immersive domes, enabling us to build both a business case for the format, and to support artists with the creation of new content with prototypes being presented around the world.

We are now entering full multi-user development with one project, In Here Out There, whilst continuing to develop investment opportunities to open a permanent fulldome facility in the Yorkshire region, and have founded the Fulldome Creative Network through the project which meets every six weeks.”

The team has been awarded additional XR Stories funding to develop one of their fulldome projects, In Here Out There, for the Climate Change Challenge.

The work of Live Cinema UK is explored in more depth in The XR Stories Podcast.

Categories: Arts, Performance, Technology