Panel – Insider Perspectives on Immersive Tech Trends

Dave moderates a panel discussion about current trends in the technology and business of immersive media. Panelists are Samantha Gorman, Co-Founder and director at Tenderclaws, David Brady, CEO and Co-Founder of Cream Productions, David Gull, CEO and Founder of Outer Realm, Rene Amador, CEO of ARWall, and Mark Rickard, Founder and Executive Producer at Virtuality. This discussion occurred on November 12th, 2019, at the Digital Hollywood conference in Los Angeles. Digital Hollywood (https://www.digitalhollywood.com/) debuted in 1993 and is among the leading trade conferences in its field with over 15,000 top executives in the film, television, music, home video, cable, telecommunications and computer industries attending events each year. Organizer Victor Harwood is considered a leading authority on the convergence of the entertainment and technology industries. David Gull is a tech entrepreneur, licensed architect, startup advisor, and LEED Accredited Professional with particular focus on Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality solutions for Real Estate and futuristic enterprise visions. He has delivered 500+ New Development Virtual Tours to date. He believes people make decisions based on gut-level emotions, and VR and AR can be powerful assets to create emotionally compelling experiences that motivate people to take action. Rene Amador has worked with 16 startups over 22 years, starting at age 10 when he got his start selling personal finance software his father developed for the Commodore Amiga computer. After working in digital development for FOX Broadcasting Company and the Baker Entertainment Group, he co-founded digital agency Automaton Creative, where he pitched and directed over 350 commercials, short films, and pilots as co-founder, general manager, and creative director. Rene co-founded ARwall in 2017 as an augmented reality solution for filmmakers. David Brady is CEO of Cream Productions, a company he co-founded in 2003. With offices in Toronto and Los Angeles, Cream develops, finances and produces distinctive and award-winning content across a wide range of TV and digital platforms in North America and internationally. Cream is a world leader in VR/AR technologies and storytelling, starting its VR unit in 2015. Cream is currently developing a proprietary technology to create high-fidelity, low-computational AI backed virtual humans. Mark Rickard is an award-winning film and VR producer. He has developed and produced several feature films alongside Hollywood luminaries like Terrence Malick & Edward R. Pressman, and was a producer on the 2019 film RUN THE RACE, which was Executive Produced by Tim Tebow. Mr. Rickard founded the immersive entertainment company, Virtuality, in 2017, with initial ventures including the groundbreaking volumetric adaptation of monologues from MACBETH, titled “Shakesperiences”, which he also directed. He’s aiming to again break new ground with forthcoming experiences based on major literary works such as an award-winning novel by Arthur C. Clarke. Samantha Gorman is Co-Founder and Director at Tender Claws, an award-winning independent creative studio operating at the intersection of art, games, and technology. She has been working in XR since 2002, specializing in writing for interactive media, and is currently a PhD fellow in Media Arts & Practice at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts. With her work at Tender Claws she brings a unique approach to XR content creation, making players question the nature of technology and our place in a tech-driven society, for experiences that truly compelling and provocative. Work from Tender Claws has helped launch every major XR platform including Google Daydream, Google ARCore, Oculus Go, and Oculus Quest. Video of this panel session can be viewed here (https://vimeo.com/375173788). Special Guests: David Brady, David Gull, Mark Rickard, Rene Amador, and Samantha Gorman.