Mission Control, we are ready for Austin!
8i and Buzz Aldrin head to SXSW for the premiere the world’s first legacy VR project featuring a human hologram
Last summer Buzz Aldrin came into 8i studios to record a message to astronauts and scientists preparing for the journey to Mars. Since then, we’ve had the honor to work with the American icon and our partners at Time Inc. to bring his vision to life in virtual reality. Buzz Aldrin: CYCLING PATHWAYS TO MARS, which premieres next week at SXSW, is the world’s first legacy Virtual Reality project that archives Dr. Aldrin’s plan to send humans to Mars with his hologram as your guide.
We are over the moon to bring Buzz’s vision to life for the first time at SXSW, and, then to the world via Time Inc’s LIFE VR.
If you’re headed to Austin, we hope you will check out the VR experience and sessions where we’ll be discussing this groundbreaking project:
WORLD PREMIERE: “Buzz Aldrin: Cycling Pathways to Mars”
Virtual Cinema, Salon 5, JW Marriott Austin — Level 4, Grand Ballroom
Tuesday, March 14 through Thursday, March 16 — 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
SXSW attendees can be the first in the world to experience “Buzz Aldrin’s Cycling Pathways to Mars.” The experience takes approximately 10 minutes and appointments are first-come, first-served and subject to availability.
FEATURED SESSION: A Conversation with Buzz Aldrin and Jeff Kluger, TIME
Austin Convention Center, Room 18ABCD
Tuesday, March 14 at 3:30–4:30 p.m.
In a featured onstage conversation, Buzz Aldrin will speak to Jeffrey Kluger, Editor at Large at Time Magazine about his plans to get humans to Mars, his experience at the South Pole, and the importance of capturing his hologram and legacy in VR for future generations.
#HoloBuzz
Party-goers should keep an eye out for #HoloBuzz, a photorealistic hologram of Buzz Aldrin will make an appearance in Augmented Reality at SXSW events throughout the festival leading up to the world premiere! So try to find #HoloBuzz… and “get your ass to Mars!”
PANEL: Holograms and the Future of Lifestyle VR & AR
JW Marriott Salon 3–4
Tuesday, March 14 from 2 -3 p.m.
8i Co-founder Linc Gasking, Mia Tramz, Senior Multimedia Editor from Time Magazine, Rachel Weiss, Vice President of Digital Innovation and Entrepreneurship at L’Oreal USA and Scott Barbour, VP of Production Technology at Sony Pictures Entertainment will gather onstage to discuss what role human holograms play in helping brands scale their relationship with consumers in VR & AR. This panel will explore how the future of every industry will be impacted by this new digital reality.
PANEL: Technology & Storytelling
Sunday, March 12, from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Cafe Blue, 340 E 2nd St
Amy Sezak, Head of Communications for 8i, Carla Borras, Director of Digital Video at Frontline (PBS), Mitch Gelman, CTO at Newseum and Max Solomon, Executive Director of Black Dot Films will gather at Cafe Blue to discuss how to design and create unique experiences that can be experienced by broad audiences and how the current evolution in storytelling is disrupting the way traditional media tells compelling stories.
We hope we get to connect with y’all in Austin soon and for those of you not at the festival, look for “Buzz Aldrin: Cycling Pathways to Mars,” coming to you on your favorite headset soon.
Big thanks to our partners at Time Inc, Soylent, Loot and FuseFX for their support on this project.
