Project Syria: An Immersive Journalism Experience (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yku27o7Z4Bo)

Leading on from initial research into the Oculus Rift, I wanted to find some examples of similar work based around my own post-apocalyptic world that had already been attempted with or without success in VR. My research led me to ‘Project Syria’, a virtual reality idea set around allowing journalists to experience the harsh reality of the ongoing civil war in Syria, from the safety of  VR headset.

The idea around this comes from creating the idea of total immersion, losing your own knowledge and whereabouts, whilst letting yourself completely absorb the sights, visions and in this case horrors of a war torn country. Virtual reality can take anyone to a place that they may not feel safe and tell the story of what is happening and why it is happening, therefore showing links between ‘Goodbye 100’ and immersive journalism in the area of educating and informing first world consumers about what impact certain actions can have either presently or in the future.

This section of work interests me because it utilizes the technology, but to create something beyond an entertainment project, but instead convey a message, which is partially what my project in attempting to do. The level of design and complex creation that does into ‘project Syria’ is something that would need to be recreated within ‘Goobye100’ for the project to appear believable. It come down to envisioning a world where you could become totally emerged and practicing building an almost simulation designed to shock and ask questions to the select audience or player.

Syria itself sadly becomes a great example of fieldwork to study to create ideas for how a world 100 years from now may look. The badly damaged country is now little more than bleak colours and ruined buildings. As much as this is disturbing it can become the basics of object ideas around 3D modelling and set design when building in the Unreal Engine 4, therefore photographical work around ‘Project Syria’ and other photographers work has proven to be extremely useful in initial sketches, ideas and modelling practice.

Importantly this digital flagship helps bring political and academicals awareness to a problem using VR. Journalism is often required to help spread a message for change, meaning ‘Project Syria’ perhaps has begun creating a portal for the world of VR to be understood and used within education, whilst being heavily publicized and developed as a commercial project,  hopefully bringing ‘Goobye100’ along with it.