AN AWARD FOR CINEMA AND INNOVATION IN SORRENTO
“Sorrento Peninsula” awarded to Timothy Jung, international expert on virtual and augmented reality.
Sorrento-Naples (Italy) – Technology is now able to influence the way we live through direct impact on perceptions, particularly sight and hearing, increasing them in terms of sensitivity and experience. Cinema from aesthetics to tradition and innovation, will be discussed in Sorrento on Oct. 28, at the inauguration of the Penisola Sorrentina Award, a prestigious event promoted by the City of Sorrento under the artistic direction of Mario Esposito and the patronage of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, the Italian Directorate General for Cinema and Audiovisual of the Italian Ministry of Culture and the Film Commission of Regione Campania. Moderating the proceedings will be the patron of the event, Mario Esposito, and journalist Raffaella Salamina, director of Il Giornale Off.
Virtual reality and filmmaking are a combination that has been going on for more than two decades: there are dozens of films that have taken their cues from a parallel world of three-dimensional connections and relationships. Best experience of the meeting will be that of the audiovisual project: “The Divine Comedy in VR: Inferno, an immersive journey,” produced by ETT Spa – a SCAI Group company expert in digital creativity and innovation – the only Italian company admitted last April to the international highlight event of immersive technologies, namely the XR International Conference in Lisbon.
“The Divine Comedy VR: Inferno, an immersive journey“ a short film, lasting about seven minutes, narrated by actor Francesco Pannofino, allows the viewer to step into the shoes of the Supreme Poet and cross the threshold of Hell to embark on his journey. The strong point of the production is, in fact, the integration of computer graphics and film footage in Virtual Reality, thanks to which the viewer can enjoy an immersive and engaging experience. For the Dante VR project, ETT was entirely in charge of the production in Computer-Generated Imagery (CGI) Animation, working long and hard on the conception, design and rendering of the 3D animated models, starting with a storyboard closely linked to the verses and images of Dante’s Divine Comedy.
Highly anticipated in Sorrento is the talk by Timothy Jung, the internationally renowned expert on XR and VR. “Technologies will significantly transform the film industry”, warns the scholar, among the world’s leading experts celebrated for his research work in the fields of augmented reality and virtual reality for tourism, cultural heritage, education, training and health care. Founder and director of Creative AR & VR Hub and head of the MMU AR & VR research group at Manchester Metropolitan University, UK. He has been chairing the International AR & VR Conference since 2017. His research interests include AI, IoT, Big Data, and 5G immersive technology innovation geared toward wellness and quality of life. In addition, he is the co-author of “Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality” the most downloaded book in Business and Management in 2018. The City of Sorrento will present Prof. Jung with a special award for cinema and innovation. Also receiving awards, Adele Magnelli, creator and head of the Dante audiovisual project in virtual reality, and Carlo Rodomonti, head of strategic and digital marketing at Rai Cinema. Also representing ETT in Sorrento, which has won Best Paper Awards in the past, will be Federico Basso and Alessandro Cavallaro, director and storyteller, respectively, of the short film in VR, which after the talk will be viewed by the audience and students participating in the Lab section of the “Penisola Sorrentina” Prize.
Of original taste is the comparison with traditional techniques and results in short film and cinematography. A special award will, in fact, be given to Sorrento director Antonino Giammarino for his first feature: “Anna Mendoza”.
The event will continue the following day with the Press Junket, curated by Pier Paolo Mocci (director of Fortune Entertainment) in dialogue with Anna Pavignano, co-author with Mario Martone of the documentary being produced: “Over there someone loves me.”
““Producing new culture, in the wake of tradition, but also of modernity, development and revitalization: this is the mission of the “Penisola Sorrentina Prize,” says Sorrento Mayor Massimo Coppola, on the eve of the event, which will also feature other big names in film, TV and entertainment, including Anna Mazzamauro, Marina Confalone and British star Amy Macdonald.