VR Diaries: ‘Cloud over Sidra’ Uses a Child’s Voice to Drive a Powerful Story

I think the strongest part of the virtual reality piece “Clouds Over Sidra” was when Sidra said she liked cloudy days because she felt like she was being protected, like she had a blanket over her. I don’t like cloudy days because of the gloomy feelings that can come with them. However, maybe the clouds bring Sidra comfort, along with children like her who have been surrounded by danger and wars for a long time. The moment Sidra said she was told the clouds also come from Syria and one day she will return to her homeland with these clouds was powerful. For a 12-year-old girl, under constant threats in her homeland with all those inner and external conflicts, it was powerful to see that she still hopes to return to her home —her real home.

The rather weak part of the story is sometimes there is a lack of explanation and long pause in between sentences or phrase. The part that I am referring to is when she talked about the bakery along the way to school. Sidra said the smell sometimes made them mad. I wanted to know why the smell drive them mad. Is it because they don’t have the money to buy the bread? Or is it some other reasons? But she just stopped there and left me curious. Another part is in the computer “room” where the boys were playing games. She said she never understood computer games or boys. It was a very minor thing, but it took me a while to stitch the two sentences back together.

The part I remembered the most was when she said she wanted to go back to Syria one day. She said she is not going to be in Zaatari, Jordan forever. All that was temporary. She was hopeful for the future and she was taking the chance to get her education while she was in Jordan.

I am moved by the story of Sidra and she is only one of the many children in Zaatari and many other refugee camps.

The technical aspect of the experience was okay. As for storytelling technique, I enjoyed having Sidra narrate throughout the piece. It makes the whole VR experience much more immersive. I not only was in the same environment Sidra was, but I was also able to hear her voice and walk through her journey. It makes the story much more personal and connects with viewers.

The best practice I would recommend is to make use of the immersive environment together with the very original voice of the story character to narrate the story. I think it works really well to bring the viewers closer to the story and environment being presented.

There weren’t any bad storytelling techniques in this piece. I think the shooting and the storytelling were executed well. The overall user experience is great too.

People, including myself, usually have a perception that people staying in refugee camps are having a hard life and they are pitiful, but after seeing this, I realized these refugees can also enjoy their life. The physical environment might not be the best for them, but they find ways to live happily.

I watched this video again with my laptop, but it wasn’t as immersive.