The Venice Film Festival’s immersive sidebar celebrates its 10th anniversary this year with a selection of projects, including titles featuring contributions by high-profile names such as Margot Robbie and Omar Sy.
Overall, Venice Immersive will present 68 projects from 26 countries, of which 30 will play in competition, and 35 will be out of competition. Among these are titles such as Nevatars, directed by Andy Serkis and voiced by Daisy Ridley and Kathleen Turner, and Galapagos: The Last Eden, directed by Anthony Geffen and voiced by Margot Robbie. Scroll down for the full lineup.
Other high-profile projects in the Venice Immersive sidebar include Artou, directed by Mauritanian director Abderrahmane Sissako, and voiced by French actor Omar Sy, who is also one of the producers; Solwata, a documentary about climate refugees voiced by Mark Ruffalo; and Bowie: Unseen Unheard, an immersive audio visual work created from rare and never seen photos of David Bowie shot by his official photographer Denis O’Regan on the 10th anniversary of his death.
Paul Raphaël, the Emmy-winning artist and co-founder of Felix & Paul Studios, will serve as the president of the Venice Immersive jury. He will be joined by Iranian filmmaker Négar Motevalymeidanshah and Belgian director and writer Kate Voet. The Immersive Jury hands out the following prizes: Venice Immersive Grand Prize, Venice Immersive Special Jury Prize, and Venice Immersive Achievement Prize.
The Venice Immersive programme takes place on the island of Lazzaretto Vecchio, a short boat ride up from the Lido. The Venice Film Festival runs from September 2 to September 12.
Check out the lineup below.
VENICE IMMERSIVE
In Competition
AMSTERDAM 1652: THE HANDS OF THE CITY
by NIENKE HUITENGA-BROEREN
Netherlands, France / 37’ / virtual reality, installation
ANOKHYA: THE ORIGIN
by ANAND KISHORE
India/ 27’/ virtual reality
ARTOU
by ABDERRAHMANE SISSAKO
France, Mauritania, Luxembourg / 27’ / virtual reality
BACK TO THE EXPERIENCE
by JESSIEN HUANG
China / 40’/ virtual reality, world
BEING IN YOU
by MICHAŁ STANKIEWICZ
Poland/ 18’/ virtual reality, installation
BOWIE: UNSEEN UNHEARD
by DENIS O’REGAN, NICK RYAN
UK/ 25’ / immersive installation
DISNEYNATURE’S WOLF: AN IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCE
by JEFF WILSON
UK, USA, Canada/ 20’/ immersive film
EMPIRE AT SEA
by PETER FLAHERTY
USA/ 22’ / installation, mixed reality
EVEREST: THE FIRST ASCENT
by JEAN DELLAC, BENJAMIN AURICHE
France/ 37’ / installation, virtual reality
EYES OF SHAME (GÉDOS AKYS)
by TOMAS TAMOŠAITIS
Lithuania, France, Croatia / 40’ / virtual reality
FINDING FRIDA
by HILDE K. KJØS
Norway, Netherlands / 41’ / virtual reality, installation
GALAPAGOS: THE LAST EDEN
by ANTHONY GEFFEN
UK/ 60’/ XR glasses, installation
HONEYBOYS
by TIBOR DE JONG
Netherlands, Belgium / 36’ / virtual reality
NEL BLU
by FINS
USA/ 60’/ virtual reality, world
NEVATARS
by ANDY SERKIS, JOSH YOUSSEF
UK, USA, Argentina / 31’ / XR glasses, installation
NOTHING TO SEE HERE
by CELINE DAEMEN
Netherlands/ 8’/ installation
NOX
by RIO NAKADA
Japan/ 20’/ virtual reality, installation
OCTOPOCALYPSE
by MAX SACKER, ARITE SZADKOWSKI
Germany/ 20’/ immersive installation
ÔL (HAUNTS)
by LUCY HAMMOND, TOMOS CHETWODE-BARTON
UK/ 15’/ virtual reality
OUT OF THE ASHES
by RORY MITCHELL, NONNY DE LA PEÑA
USA/ 26’/ virtual reality, installation
OUTRENOIR
by GORDON
France/ 12’ / virtual reality
RAJ’IN (WE SHALL RETURN)
by FAIZ ABU RMELEH, KEREN MANOR
Germany, Palestine / 24’/ virtual reality
SHIFTING CONNECTIONS
by TUNG-YEN CHOU
Taipei/ 12’/ mixed reality, installation
SMITHSONIAN STARSTRUCK: AN IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCE
by ELLIOTT MIZROCH
USA, UK/ 38’/ virtual reality, installation
SOLWATA
by FELIX GAEDTKE, GAYATRI PARAMESWARAN
USA, Germany, Solomon Islands/ 25’/ installation, mixed reality
SUNSET MOTEL
by GILLES JOBIN
Switzerland, France/ 20’/ virtual reality
THE PIGEON RING
by YUQI ZHANG
China/ 35’/ virtual reality, installation
TOMORI
by MISA HARU
Japan/ 20’/ mixed reality, installation
ULRICA
by HONGBO CAI
USA, Mexico, Federated States of Micronesia/ 20’/ immersive installation
YESTERDAY MAYBE
by MATTHIEU VAN EECKHOUT
France/ 16’/ virtual reality
Out of Competition
(international selection of the best works that have been released or premiered elsewhere since the last edition of the Venice International Film Festival)
Best of Experiences
CRAFTING CRIMES
by CHLOÉ ROCHEREUIL
France, USA / 20’ / virtual reality
HOTEL INFINITY
by WILLIAM CHYR
USA/ 120’/ virtual reality
IN 36,000 WAYS
by KARIM BEN KHELIFA
Germany/ 3’/ immersive installation
LITTLE NIGHTMARES VR: ALTERED ECHOES
by LUCAS ROUSSEL
France/ 240’/ virtual reality
OF WOMAN BORN
by NALINI MALANI
India/ 20’/ immersive installation
SPOMYNY
by SOPHIA BULGAKOVA
Netherlands, Ukraine/ 20’/ immersive installation
SPYMASTER
by JEREMY MOIRANO
France/ 240’/ virtual reality
THE AMUSEMENT
by EIKE LANGBEHN, MARC BARNES
Germany, France/ 180’ / virtual reality
VOOOOOO—PEEEEEE—
by JIYUN PARK, HYEUNJOO WOO
South Korea/ 20’/ virtual reality, haptics
Best of Worlds
A WONDERFUL THING TO REALIZE by Screaming ColorA WORLD OF MY OWN by 襟草たぬBLUMEA… by TontonDemonBREAK 25: SINTO FELIZ by PKCELESTIUM by LavryouCOME HOME by Aruse ArkaniDAWN BEYOND… by TontonDemonDEMONHOUR – CHAPTER 1 by Kitsunaki / Jan KösterFORGOTTEN EMPIRE by 3D MasterFRACTURED WINTER by LavryouFROZEN SIGNAL by LavryouHALF EMPTY by yuri_tsI FEEL SMALL by FewiixLIMINAL NIGHTMARES by Autumn BoydLIMITLESS PT․1˸ ENTER THE VOID by Hill Jr.MEMORY by Lera NibiruNOCTILUCA by LuminaPalettePATRIKI VR by DrMorroSPATIALOGRAPHY by VoxelKeiSPECULARIUM by jasper ｡THE ANTIKYTHERA MECHANISM by PHIAbunny, ThrillTOKOGRAMMETRY MUSEUM by TokoyoshiTOWN OF CONNECTION by haruki_haruVEILED DARK by Dean`, Karl KroenenVERTICAL HORIZON ⁄ 361 DEGREES by Inloco GalleryVOLARE by Juice …
Biennale College Cinema – Immersive – Out of Competition
DESERT PALMS
by TRISTAN SENIUK, JOHN GERARD
USA/ 32’/ immersive film
Supported by the grant BCC Immersive 10th edition (2025/2026)
LIBRARY OF DREAMS
by ZHENYA RZHEZNIKOVA
Israel, Germany/ 25’ / virtual reality
Developed during BCC immersive 8th edition (2023-2024)
THE WHITE SABOTEUR
by BARTHELEMY ANTOINE-LOEFF, HUGO ARCIER
France, Germany / 15’ / virtual reality, installation
Developed during BCC Immersive 7th edition (2022-2023)