Irregular Heartbeats

Approaching storytelling through LBE VR (Location-Based VR) in a more accessible manner, 'Irregular Heartbeats' offers a narratively rich experience set inside a virtual coffee shop. Thematically delving into both mundane chit-chat and deeply intimate conversations, the piece invites its audience to immerse themselves in moments of intimate conversations between people who care about each other but have conflicting world views.

We believe Irregular Heartbeats will appeal to those interested in immersive experiences and true stories. This innate curiosity about the lives and personal stories of others is evident in the strong following that podcasts such as The Moth or the New York Times’ Modern Love have cultivated in recent years. Irregular Heartbeats taps into this appetite for “real people telling true stories”, while steering the focus of those stories towards difficult and intimately personal subject matter. As we want to develop the experience using the Quest Pro and use cutting edge MR technologies, Irregular Heartbeats would be at the frontier of exploring the possibilities of this new headset. Beyond the Festival We would seek out immersive PR opportunities with influential XR blogs like The Verge, Road to VR, VRScout, UploadVR. To introduce new audiences to this piece, we would advertise it as an adjunct experience to coffee shops around the UK. We imagine it working well in art gallery cafe’s (e.g. The Serpentine, London) to create more engagement in their respective coffee shops. Using popular hashtags such as #coffeelover #cafe #coffeeshop #espresso #barista or #coffeegram, it would attract an entirely different demographic than those who might actively seek out immersive content. And this is the point of the piece; to reach people who may not be in touch with the topics addressed. Coffee could be served before or after the experience - to not leave anyone disappointed.

The national theatre offered us to use their studio / resources (in kind)