Andy Serkis Unleashes Imagination with Venice Immersive Breakout ‘Nevatars’

'Nevatars' is one of two projects at Venice Immersive showcasing Google's XREAL Aura smart glasses Premiering out of Venice Immersive, “Nevatars” has long been a passion project for director Andy Serkis. It took root when Serkis and partner Jonathan Cavendish co-founded The Imaginarium, a production studio built on Serkis’ deep expertise in performance capture. They had the hardware, the knowledge — and, it turns out, had been sitting on the story all along.

These characters are given thought and spirit and a life of their own, and then they end up in a folder called ‘old assets,’ right next to one called ‘new projects.’ It was born from those digital rejects, hoping to be noticed.” The Imaginarium team had kicked the idea around since 2011, but it gained real momentum when Google’s immersive production division, 100 Zeroes, approached the duo looking for stories suited to the format. Working with co-director Josh Nelson Youssef — himself founder of immersive storytelling outfit Boona — Serkis and co. centered the story around a young aspiring artist, unduly ashamed of her earlier creations. It’s a parable about holding on to your initial creative instinct.

She starts out making wonderfully chaotic, personal work, but risks losing that to become an artist who just fits in. When she finally makes something to please everyone, it feels generic — and nobody wants that.” Of course, the 30-minute XR experience plays out as a narrative adventure, part chase and part escape story, following both the young artist and her rag-tag group of design rejects as they try to break free from the desktop trash bin. The voice cast includes Daisy Ridley, Josh Gad, Kathleen Turner, Steve Zahn, Kelly Marie Tran and Serkis himself.

We used a cinematic viewport, where things move in and out of the frame, familiar like a traditional movie while really taking advantage of what immersive can do. There are moments that feel like a stunning animated film, and then it comes alive in ways that are still untraditional for the medium.” The project was initially designed for the Android XR platform, so it came as a happy surprise this past April when “Nevatars” was tapped as one of the first titles to launch on the XREAL Aura — Google-powered AR smart glasses being positioned as a potential game-changer for their portability and light weight. The glasses’ voice-activation capability opened up new storytelling tools, and gave the experience itself a new dimension.

The fidelity of the visuals is stunning, too, especially for something that sits on your face like a pair of glasses.” The Imaginarium’s Phil Robertson describes the effect as something closer to augmentation than escapism. You’re in a world within your world: comfortable in your own environment, with another one right there to step into and explore.” Looking ahead, Serkis and Cavendish hope to keep exploring “Nevatars” as cross-media IP, all while further entrenching themselves in the immersive space. This is just the beginning.”