{"id":12159,"date":"2025-10-09T16:42:13","date_gmt":"2025-10-09T15:42:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/watershed.co.uk\/filmhub\/?post_type=guides_resources&#038;p=12159"},"modified":"2025-10-09T16:56:40","modified_gmt":"2025-10-09T15:56:40","slug":"role-of-the-environment-in-immersive-storytelling","status":"publish","type":"guides_resources","link":"https:\/\/watershed.co.uk\/filmhub\/guides_resources\/role-of-the-environment-in-immersive-storytelling\/","title":{"rendered":"The Role of the Environment in Immersive Storytelling"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<section class=\"spaceBlock textImage style01 paddingAll alignLeft verticalAlignCenter half\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"tint\">\n\t\t<div class=\"innerPadding\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wide\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid\">\n\t\t\t\t    <div class=\"span6 grow\">\n\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t\t        <div class=\"blockSubTitle\"><h3>By Ruth Mariner, recipient of a 2023 Early Development Fund award <\/h3><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t        \t\t\t\t\t        <div class=\"blockContent\"><p><p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u2018Immersive\u2019 is an ever-popular but diffuse term that\u2019s often used to mean\u202f\u2013 at it\u2019s most basic level\u202f\u2013 an experience that surrounds us. But in the context of storytelling, being surrounded by something doesn\u2019t necessarily mean it becomes meaningful. Immersion, crucially, comes in different forms: spatial, interactive, emotional, and each of these need to interact with the core theme and story in order to create a meaningful experience.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">The environment shouldn\u2019t be treated as a backdrop, but as a narrative container \u2013 a living, breathing space where story is told through the interactions between character, audience and world. As a narrative designer and creative director my task is to ensure these elements serve to reinforce and give weight to the story we\u2019re trying to tell.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">In this article I<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u2019<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">ll explore a series of questions that immersive creators can ask themselves in order to facilitate <\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"none\">alignment between storytelling and environmental design<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"none\">. <\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">To do so, I\u2019ll refer to my\u00a0 immersive project <\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"none\">Shapeshifter<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u2026<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t    <\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n<section class=\"spaceBlock textImage style01 noPaddingTopBottom alignCenter verticalAlignCenter half\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"tint\">\n\t\t<div class=\"innerPadding\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"thin\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid\">\n\t\t\t\t    <div class=\"span6 grow\">\n\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t        \t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t    <\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t        <div class=\"span6 grow\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"figureWithCaption\">\n\t\t\t\t            <img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/watershed.co.uk\/filmhub\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Screenshot-2025-10-09-at-16.14.16.png\"\/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t        <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n<section class=\"spaceBlock textImage style01 noPaddingTopBottom alignLeft verticalAlignCenter half\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"tint\">\n\t\t<div class=\"innerPadding\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wide\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid\">\n\t\t\t\t    <div class=\"span6 grow\">\n\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t        \t\t\t\t\t        <div class=\"blockContent\"><p><p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">Introducing Shapeshifter<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><i><span data-contrast=\"none\">Shapeshifter<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"none\"> is an immersive experience I<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u2019<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">ve been developing over the past two years with support from BFI NETWORK, Arts Council England, XR Stories, the University of Nottingham, and the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Made in collaboration with Co-creative Director Maggie Bain, Technical Director David Gochfeld, Developer Lucy Wheeler,\u00a0 Art Director Freyja Sewell and Producer Toki Allison. It\u2019s still a work-in-progress and our most recent stage has been user testing at Central School of Speech and Drama.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">The piece explores queer identity through the figure of the <\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">P\u00faca <\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u2014 a shapeshifting nature spirit from Celtic folklore. It interweaves the lived experience of non-binary actor Maggie Bain with extraordinary scientific insights into the fluid diversity of sex and gender in the natural world, questioning our assumptions around \u2018what is natural.\u2019 It\u2019s a location-based experience for up to 10 players wearing virtual reality headsets, within the same space as a live actor. It includes elements of story, audience interaction, exploration and play.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Across plants, fungi and animals, shapeshifting is not just metaphorical but biological reality: fish that change sex during their lifetimes, fungi with thousands of mating types, or animals whose reproduction adapts to environmental conditions. The role of the environment within the piece is to invite us into more expansive ways of seeing both ourselves and the world around us.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t    <\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n<section class=\"spaceBlock textImage style01 paddingAll alignLeft verticalAlignCenter half\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"tint\">\n\t\t<div class=\"innerPadding\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wide\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid\">\n\t\t\t\t    <div class=\"span6 grow\">\n\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t        \t\t\t\t\t        <div class=\"blockContent\"><p><p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">What Do We Need to Represent?<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">In creating an immersive environment, the most successful aesthetics often start with the question: if it\u2019s not providing interactive, symbolic, or contextual purpose, then do you really need it?\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">One of the traps of immersive media, particularly in commercially-driven XR, which serves mainly to showcase the tech,<\/span> <span data-contrast=\"none\">is the compulsion to render everything. But coming from a theatrical background, we asked a very different question: what do we need to represent \u2014 and equally, what can we leave to the imagination?<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">This principle shaped our design approach. We leaned into hand-drawn textures, suggestive forms and symbols.<\/span> <span data-contrast=\"none\">For example,<\/span> <span data-contrast=\"none\">hand-drawn outlines of leaves that, when approached, scuttle to the side.<\/span> <span data-contrast=\"none\">By providing less, the result is that the audience projects into the world, becoming co-creators of its meaning.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t    <\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n<section class=\"spaceBlock textImage style01 noPaddingTopBottom alignCenter verticalAlignCenter half\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"tint\">\n\t\t<div class=\"innerPadding\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"thin\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid\">\n\t\t\t\t    <div class=\"span6 grow\">\n\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t        \t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t    <\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t        <div class=\"span6 grow\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"figureWithCaption\">\n\t\t\t\t            <img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/watershed.co.uk\/filmhub\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Screenshot-2025-10-09-at-16.18.22.png\"\/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t        <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n<section class=\"spaceBlock textImage style01 noPaddingTop alignLeft verticalAlignCenter half\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"tint\">\n\t\t<div class=\"innerPadding\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wide\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid\">\n\t\t\t\t    <div class=\"span6 grow\">\n\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t        \t\t\t\t\t        <div class=\"blockContent\"><p><p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">What Relationships Do We Need to Create?\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">What relationships are key to your experience, and how are these best facilitated by the space? Do you want to create 1:1 relationships, groups or a solo experience?\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Immersive spaces aren<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u2019<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">t just settings, they<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u2019<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">re <\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">arenas for social interaction. In the case of <\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"none\">Shapeshifter<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"none\"> this interaction takes place between audience members, but the key dynamics in our project is the changing relationship between the audience and the performer. Our design created moments of closeness and distance: nooks where the actor could retreat, and opportunities where they could<\/span> <span data-contrast=\"none\">pass through digital surfaces in order to hide themselves and re-emerge. These nooks can hold intimate moments with one audience member at a time, pods can completely contain an audience member within their own space (separating them from others and leaving space for their own personal reflection), and paths will clearly invite audiences to move through the space in a particular direction.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">How Do We Need to Experience Ourselves?<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">How can participants experience themselves within the space, in a way that helps bring home the message of the piece?\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">In <\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"none\">Shapeshifter<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"none\"> we invite audiences to explore their own capacity for change, and trying out and reflecting on new forms is a key part of the experience. To bring the audiences\u2019 attention to this they being the experience with no avatar, and from there we gradually build their identity, letting them choose a symbol. Later, they inhabit a range of avatars as they accompany P\u00faca on the lessons they learned from beings in the natural world. This ties to the central message of the piece; enabling them to experience shapeshifting first hand, rather than just witnessing it.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">How Do We Need the World to Respond?<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Why does it matter that the audience is there?\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">In immersive storytelling the world must respond to the audience, not necessarily in complex ways, but in ways that help the audience feel that their presence <\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"none\">mattered<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"none\">. For example, a key theme within <\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"none\">Shapeshifter<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"none\"> is reverence for the natural world, and therefore this is embedded in the experience: bow to a flower and it opens; stroke a moss-like wall and its texture changes; press your hand to a mushroom and it blooms.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">However, the main way in which the piece responds to the player is through the interactive dialogue, which takes place between the audience member and P\u00faca. Through intimate conversations, the audience have the power to help P\u00faca trust humans again, and help them return to the human world.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Hopefully, these questions will help you on your own journey of immersive storytelling and give you some food-for-thought.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\">\n<p data-ccp-border-bottom=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-bottom=\"0px\" data-ccp-border-between=\"0px none #000000\" data-ccp-padding-between=\"0px\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">The BFI NETWORK Early Development Fund opens once per year for writers of live action, animation or immersive projects, find out more <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bfi.org.uk\/get-funding-support\/bfi-network\/bfi-network-funding-finder\/bfi-network-england-early-development-fund\"><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">here<\/span><\/b><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\">.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t    <\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t    \t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hear from Ruth Mariner, a previous recipient of the Early Development Fund, about the role of the environment when developing immersive long-form work.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":12160,"template":"","categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12159","guides_resources","type-guides_resources","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-making-films"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO 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