CULTVR at the forefront of a new form of cinematic experience

CULTVR Lab is a unique immersive arts centre (the first of its kind in Europe) designed from the ground up to provide a richly engaging environment to support the development and dissemination of future facing immersive and digital art practices.

The Lab’s Theatre Dome contains the largest screen in Wales with over 225 square meters of projection surface which blends 12 separate projectors to display a seamless 360º image. Located on Penarth Road, the CULTVR Lab enables shared virtual reality experiences which allow for new forms of experiential storytelling. CULTVR Lab has presented dance, theatre, visual arts and live music performances, with cinema now being added to their offering.

The IMMERSDIFF programme has been curated to provide a gateway into the expanding possibilities of fulldome film. The programme launched with a focus on the theme of Space, given the inherent associations with the medium’s heritage growing out from the planetarium environment. The second session of screenings featured Dance, presenting the award winning Dance Dome films produced by 4Pi Productions in collaboration with dancers and choreographers from across Wales.

The next block of screenings focuses on the immersive creative works coming out of Canada with seven fulldome films created by Canadian artists working at the forefront of this exciting shared medium. This programme has been curated by Society of Arts and Technology (Montreal), the first art focused dome venue in the world, and has the support of Ffilm Cymru and the High Commission of Canada in the UK. Screening dates are: 9th, 11th, 16th and 18th of December at 6.30 and 8pm each day.

"With their potential for collective immersive experiences, domes have always been an unparalleled playground for artists, which we experience with on a daily basis at SAT.

Based in Montréal (Canada), our rare combination between an immersive venue and a research center dedicated to arts has allowed us to support the work of more than 160 artists through our residency programs over the past 5 years. Among the various outputs of this unique ecosystem, one of the richest has been the emergence of a prolific artistic community. A natural interconnection between diverse, aesthetic, narratives and artistic disciplines, all converging towards the possibilities offered by the dome format.

The works selected for this IMMERSDIFF program portray this artistic diversity, each characterized by their singular narrative approach, borrowing language elements from 360 cinema, music, visual arts, mathematics, video game and post-internet aesthetics." Mourad Bennacer, Society of Arts and Technology - Montreal, CA

CULTVR is working with an international network of film producers and distributors, fulldome festivals and immersive venues to curate and present an ongoing programme with some of the best fulldome films covering a broad selection of forms, from documentary, fiction, educational, and artistic approaches to this engrossing and expanding medium. In the new year 360º cinema will be a regular offering for this unique immersive arts venue.