As The Floor Shifts
Digital dance shorts in extended realities
A series of digital dance shorts in extended realities that visualise symptoms experienced by people with neurological conditions and disabilities.
As The Floor Shifts is a short 10 minute film, created over several years with a number of Lived Experience Consultants (LECs) who have influenced what we say to audiences about their experience of living with a neurological disability. The LECs collaborated in this research, fed into concept development, shared testimonials, tested episode experiences, and supported us to make artistic choices on which was most impactful and accessible.
The film is episodic, reflecting the way that many people experience symptoms and side effects of their illness. Often people living with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) are said to be ‘experiencing an episode’ at times when their symptoms are exacerbated.
The episodes have been created using various virtual reality techniques, including Motion Capture and Volumetric Capture. The film combines contemporary dance with creative technologies to create emotive and thought provoking visual experiences.
During this project, we worked with industry leaders in digital creations and performance to develop and refine As the Floor Shifts, including Marius Mattesan (PlayLabz), Bertie Sampson (Immersive Me), Marian Sauders (Collusion), Matt Bartram (Cave & Sky).
Performers in the work included Jodie Honeybourne, Claire Lambert, Maiya Leeke & Nikki Watson.
The soundscore was designed by Jeph Vanger.
The project was filmed at DanceEast, with support from their in-house technical team.
Behind the Scenes
“Seeing my symptoms brought to life through light and dance was fascinating. I’ve never been able to fully explain it, but I really felt the dancers showed what it feels like for me each day. Everyone should see this to understand what it’s like to have MS.”
