[This piece from The Conversation describes a powerful presence experience (and uses the term) to highlight the differences between observing a story in “flat cinema” and living it in a genre of virtual reality called “reactive theatre.” The original version includes two videos. For more information see the Draw Me Close and Alice: The Virtual Reality Play websites. –Matthew] ‘A virtual mum put me to bed’: A view from the VR future of film September 19, 2017 Victoria Mapplebeck, Reader in Digital Arts, Royal Holloway I’ve just got back from the Venice Film Festival, which for the first time showcased an…

[This ZDNet story and the (free) detailed, interactive report it describes and links to make clear that a large percentage of workers do now, or would like to, work remotely, and highlight the role of presence technologies and experiences in increasing the benefits and reducing the drawbacks of telework. –Matthew] Companies that support remote work experience 25 percent lower employee turnover (and other findings) A new survey shows the pros and cons of a distributed workforce. By Greg Nichols for Robotics October 4, 2017 Employees are more loyal if they’re allowed to work remotely. That’s according to a new survey…

[An innovative new effort to bring static, black and white comics to VR is more evidence that presence does not require photorealism. This story from The Verge provides a quick summary and evaluation of the project. For more details see coverage in Rolling Stone; VR Scout, where the story notes that the creators “wanted to create that sense of presence that’s unique to VR”); and Road to VR, where the story features an 8:03 minute video. –Matthew] Square Enix shows off its vision for the future of comics with virtual reality And you can try it at NYCC by Michael…

[Note how the author of this story from The Verge about a new, promising effort to popularize virtual reality describes the strong sense of presence he experienced in a recent demo without actually using the term presence. The original version includes another image and a 1:46 minute video.  –Matthew] Hollywood and AMC theaters are betting on VR with Dreamscape Immersive Steven Spielberg, Hans Zimmer, and director Gore Verbinski get into the game by Bryan Bishop September 26, 2017 The notion that virtual reality is going to be the next great storytelling medium has run into some bumps along the way.…

[This press release from The Guardian announces a new virtual experience designed to help increase empathy and understanding of autism; for other similar efforts, see articles in the Times of Malta and Lovin Malta, and the UK’s National Autistic Society. –Matthew] Guardian launches The Party – A virtual experience of autism 9 October 2017 The Guardian is pleased to announce the launch of The Party – A virtual experience of autism, the publisher’s latest virtual reality (VR) project. The Party places viewers in the shoes of newly-diagnosed Layla, a 15-year old, autistic girl at her mother’s surprise birthday party.…

[It’s encouraging to see the potential impacts of new presence-evoking technologies lead to discussions about ethical guidelines for designing presence experiences. This story about the ethics of presence in the context of journalism is from Undark. –Matthew] Virtual Reality and Journalistic Ethics: Where Are the Lines? VR can transport viewers directly into news stories. But questions linger about how the stories are produced, and how audiences remember them. 09.27.2017 / By Dan Robitzski Imagine if you could spend a morning climbing a skyscraper, running with the bulls in Spain, or even walking on Pluto. As news outlets experiment with immersive…