Human Within: Pushing Boundaries of Interactive VR Storytelling

Gaming Staff • January 3, 2025

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Signal Space Lab and Actrio Studio have revealed the first Dev Diary for their upcoming multimedia sci-fi interactive VR project, Human Within, which will be available on Meta Quest 2 and 3 on January 9th, and coming soon to SteamVR. The debut Dev Diary, titled Human Within: An Innovative Interactive VR Experience, discusses how the VR project combines elements of video games and film through unique storytelling mechanics and explores the impact of advanced technology on modern society.

Human Within aims to push the boundaries of interactive narrative, long-format VR experiences by providing a unique level of user involvement and interactivity. The story is told across a unique combination of three distinct visual styles: The Internet Space blending 2D film and 3D graphics, Flashback Scenes with interactive 360 degree stereo film, and Point Cloud recreations with 6DOF 3D environments. The project was inspired by science fiction films like Lawnmower Man and Transcendence, as well as the impact of AI like ChatGPT on contemporary society.

Directed by Avi Winkler and Anne Weigel, Human Within is set in a near-future dystopia where two sisters, Nyla and Linh, are employed at Forward Industries and pioneer a groundbreaking supercomputer by harnessing the human brain's processing power. When Nyla seeks to disengage from the project, both sisters are detained and forced to continue their work amidst suspicions of their employer’s hidden motives. In a daring bid for freedom, Nyla is forced to connect the technology to Linh, and use it in the very way she feared it would be.

Human Within began pre-production in 2019 and has been supported by Meta, Canada Media Fund, Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, and Filmstiftung NRW Germany. The project has already premiered at FIVARS in Toronto on October 3rd and Beyond The Frame Festival in Tokyo on October 25th-27th, 2024.

Signal Space Lab is an award-winning interactive creation studio specializing in immersive XR entertainment, video games, and audio production. Actrio Studio is an award-winning film, games and XR producer in Germany, that focuses on impactful story

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