[Commlist] CfP: Evolutions in Cinematic Virtual Reality

*Evolutions in Cinematic Virtual Reality*

Symposium at The University of Hong Kong

18. – 19. May 2026

Just over a decade ago, the arrival of consumer-grade VR head mounted 
devices (HMDs) enabled the development of a new form of linear 
storytelling in digital virtual reality. In industrial and academic 
settings, this new narrative medium has been referred to as Cinematic 
Virtual Reality//(Dooley 2021; Mateer 2017; Ross and Munt 2018), a label 
that recognizes the adaptation of cinematic conventions and tropes 
within virtual spaces. The CVR medium continues to be well represented 
as an important filmic category within programs at major film and XR 
festivals around the world and has seen significant investments by 
leading media companies. Noting a resurgence of cinematic narratives at 
the 2025 edition of Venice Immersive (a leading venue for XR), this 
symposium takes stock of recent developments in immersive linear 
storytelling. We are particularly interested in papers that examine how 
VR filmmakers are developing a new language of immersive storytelling by 
drawing on the legacy of cinematic form in combination with VR specific 
affordances of embodiment, interactivity, and immersion. We are also 
interested in how creators take advantage of new VR film technologies 
such as the recent high-definition 180-degree format and high-fidelity HMDs.

As an initiative of HKU’s Extended Humanities Lab, the symposium is 
designed to prepare a manuscript for a volume edited by the 
co-organizers of the symposium, Kath Dooley and Tim Gruenewald. We will 
circulate full papers before the symposium, and the meeting at HKU will 
serve as an intensive 2-day workshop.

Topics of interest include but are not limited to:

180-degree vs. 360-degree VR films

Interactivity in CVR

Embodiment in CVR

New Genres of linear VR storytelling

Linear VR retail experiences (e.g. Lost Gardens of Versailles, Horizon 
of Khufu, Machu Picchu: Journey to the Lost City)

Developments in VR film form including sound, editing, staging, camera, etc.

Technologies of image capture, including volumetric video and gaussian 
splatting

The affordances of game engines vs. VR cameras

VR documentary films

Animation and CVR

Literary Adaptations for CVR

Production, Distribution, and Reception studies

Theoretical considerations of CVR within the broader XR landscape

The future of CVR

*Submission deadline*: February 20

Please submit a 300-word abstract accompanied by a 100-word biography.

*Full papers (approx. 6000 words including references) due*: May 15

Please send inquiries to the organizers Tim Gruenewald ((tgruene /at/ hku.hk) 
<mailto:(tgruene /at/ hku.hk)>) or Kath Dooley ((kathleen.dooley /at/ adelaide.edu.au) 
<mailto:(kathleen.dooley /at/ adelaide.edu.au)>)

https://www.extendedhumanities.com/ <https://www.extendedhumanities.com/>

*References*

**

Dooley, K. (2021)./Cinematic Virtual Reality/. Springer International 
Publishing.

Mateer, J. (2017). Directing for Cinematic Virtual Reality: how the 
traditional film director’s craft applies to immersive environments and 
notions of presence./Journal of media practice/,/18/(1), 14-25.

Ross, M., & Munt, A. (2018). Cinematic virtual reality: Towards the 
spatialized screenplay./Journal of Screenwriting/,/9/(2), 191-209.

**



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