ONCE UPON A SEA

Team: Nimrod Shanit (Producer And Technical Director), Ina Fichman (Producer), Adi Lavy (Director), Oury Atlan (Creative Director) Jumana Saad (Lead Unity Developer), Sebastien Gros, Barak Brinker (360 Videographers), Ariel Shtern (3d designer), Rafael Pavon (Creative Consultant)

Runtime: 15 minutes

Projected production date: Autumn 2020

Budget in place: $350,000

Projected budget: $500,000

Country: IL, CA

Once Upon a Sea is a poetic sensory story told in VR and a 360 web series telling the tragic tale of the Dead Sea. Through a physical exploration of the sea’s forbidden landscape, to curious meetings with local characters, introducing the political and ecological complexities of the region, the viewer gets a rare glimpse into one of the world’s most dangerous, soon to be extinct wonders. In the past thirty years, the Dead Sea has receded over thirty meters, as a result of centuries of human intervention and political neglect. Today, all beaches but one are inaccessible to the public due to the danger of the sinkholes; thus serving as a dark veil to Israel’s worst ecological crisis. While exploring the moonlike landscapes, the viewer meets characters from different backgrounds, offering a deep insight into the complexity of the ecological and geopolitical crisis and to why 30 years later, no significant actions have been taken to salvage what’s left of the sea.

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Play area: Room Scale

Number of players: Single-player

Built with: Unity

Compatibility: Oculus Rift S, Oculus Rift, Oculus Quest

Distribution: Webvr, Festivals, Installations, Oculus Store, Museums, LBE, At-home, Events, Educational Institutions, Natural History Museums, Science Museums, International Festivals, Schools