Immersion Nation Podcast

This week in the interview we talk with the one, the only, Steve Boyle; CEO of Epic Immersive.

From immersive hackathons in Paris to swing dancing in Japanese internment camps, we cover a whole lot of ground! We start by discussing steve’s background which starts with performance education in Thailand, India, and Indonesia while attending NYU, and ends in the unexpected origins of Epic Immersive. We trace the line between...

This week in the interview, we talk with David and Lisa Sipra; the co-founders of Room Escape Artist, the most prolific publication covering escape rooms and the escape room industry.

We start by talking about Lisa and David’s first escape rooms and how Room Escape Artist (or REA for short) came to be. Next, we move on to discuss how escape rooms are contending with the COVID-19 pandemic. And finally, we go in-depth on th...

This week in the interview, we talk with two seasoned immersive performers, Amber Lawson, and Erik Abbot-Main. One who’s principle experience comes from immersive dance in New York City, and the other from interactive acting in Los Angeles. Their professional backgrounds couldn’t be more different, which makes the similarities in their tactics and strategies as immersive performers even more striking.

We discuss how they ...

This week in the interview we get some fresh perspective from outside the immersive community, talking  with Jorge Demoya and Julian Rodriguez about the virtual reality experience, The VOID.

We explore the delta between the reactions of a gamer and a non-gamer to this industry staple and go in-depth on ‘Ralph Breaks VR’. Finally, we discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the mixed VR and real-world experience that has ma...

This week in the interview, we talk with Kendra Slack and Jordan Chlapecka of Linked Dance Theatre, a group based in New York City that creates immersive experiences that utilize a multitude of mediums in their work, but of course, emphasize dance.

We talk about: Their paths and how Linked Dance Theatre somewhat organically broke down that fourth wall. Their most recent in-person immersive experience, ‘Remembrance’. The a...

This week in the interview we talk with experience designer Tommy Honton about finding hidden magic in the world and Tommy's origin story. The creation of Stash House, LA. Why the Los Angeles legislature is confused about immersive entertainment. The art of the 2nd or 3rd impression and how Tommy used his unique way of connecting with people to find his way onto the path of the professional immersive experience designer. And s...

The results are in!

For all of you who voted. Thank you so much for taking the time helping to help support both your favorite immersive experiences, creators, and the immersive community! On January 28th, we reached out to a myriad of wonderful immersive creators...

Now, 18 days and couple thousand votes later, we’re back to invoke the names of 2019’s most remarkable immersive experiences. These experiences, both...

Welcome to the 3rd and final part of this roundtable discussion on immersive entertainment and it impacts on the real world.

Joining us we have Caroline Murphy, Chief Creative Officer of Incantrix Productions. Jessica Creane, founder of IKANTKOAN Games. Justin Fyles, Co-founder and Managing Director of Any One Thing. And Risa Puno, creator of The Privilege of Escape and Creative Time’s first open call artist.

In t...

This is part two of the three-part roundtable discussion on the real-world impact of immersive entertainment. This, in many ways, is the perfect set of episodes to be airing now, because this is the time of year where many so many people, subcultures, and industries zoom out to look at the broader picture. Where have we come from? Where is this all going? And what in the world does this all mean anyway? Well, I can think of very fe...

This week we have not one but 4 truly phenomenal guests. This is the first part of a round table discussion on immersive entertainment and its relationship to real experiences and the real world. Caroline Murphy of 'Incantrix Productions', Jessica Creane of 'IKANTKOAN Games', Justin Fyles of 'Any One Thing', and Risa Puno of 'The Privilege of Escape' guide us in exactly the kind of thought-pr...

In this episode, we talk about the 2019 immersion awards and take a look at the big picture of immersive entertainment in 2019. We revisit the concept of play with a few listeners of the podcast joining us to share their thoughts on the importance of play. Next, we discuss the potential future of immersive entertainment in 2020 and beyond. Finally, we end the show with the nominations for the 2019 immersion awards.

Selecte...

By now, we all know, It’s all about connection. 
So why am I coming back to this topic here? 

Because connection can be manifested in so many different ways. It struck me when going through the first section of this interview. It seems like the way Ross cultivates connection is by seeing a spark in someone else, and lending himself to that spark in order to meet that person where they are, to speak to that person in th...

We all have our superpowers. The set of unique experiences we have that make us uniquely suited for specific things. Often, our superpowers come from the combination of many different skills. 

Now, in our world, the world of immersive entertainment;  theater and marketing may seem like an obvious combination. But Ross is a perfect example of the way in which these skill sets can come together to become greater than the sum of their ...

To recap, last week we left off. Jeromy had gotten a call from a local bar/beer garden asking him to produce a Halloween season show for their upstairs space. They had a month to make this show, the rabbit cage, come together. 

We talk about this adventure in creation and how one could layer experiences together, in the make it immersive segment. Jeromy tells us about an experience he had with Sleep No More, and another where h...

In 2005, Jeromy Barber moved from New York City to a small town in Texas.

If Jeromy's life was a screenplay, and I was editing? I would probably advise the writer to make it just a touch less formulaic. It is fantastic. Jeromy has trained with the comedy monolith, Second City. Founded the improv focused Beta Theater in Houston and, of course, owns and operates Dinolion, a quote “Creative video house” which rocks the tagline “Pr...

This episode is brimming, overflowing even with tips and techniques for those who like to look behind the curtain. If you didn’t catch last week’s episode, it gives some background on our guest Niyia Mack’s experience producing and consulting on immersive experience design. 

This week, Niyia answers questions about creating immersive experiences when you’re not based in LA, New York, or Chicago, what she’s excited about in the chang...