Belfast-based production company Filmtrip and Queens University’s Sonic Arts Research Center [SARC] join forces to create a world first cinematic experience as part of the Creative Industries Innovations Fund.

‘Biosuite’ is a collaborative project bringing together the disciplines of film production, music composition, environmental art, technology, and engineering to research ‘future cinema’ and the ever-increasing demand for audience interactivity & immersion in the audiovisual experience.

The short film will be shot & post-produced in N.Ireland, then premiered in the world’s leading 360 degree audio facility, based in Belfast, at SARC.  The Sonic Laboratory is a unique multi-functional concert hall / research laboratory. It can accommodate an audience of up to 150 and features a 48-channel sound diffusion system.

Whilst the TV, film & games industries are rushing into 3D, conversations about 4D (adding physical effects to the 3D viewing experience ) are already taking place.  Usually the domain of the theme park such 4D experiences are becoming more widespread as new methods of attracting audiences to cinemas are being explored by the studios.

But this project ‘Biosuite’ is going one step beyond the 4D experience, and getting into the minds and emotions of an audience.

Beginning as a conversation about creating films that helped the audience feel more involved, and more immersed in the experience, Filmtrip’s Gawain Morrison & SARC’s Dr Miguel Ortiz Perez discussed a number of techniques before deciding that tapping into emotions of an audience could be really interesting.

The opportunity to make this idea a reality came when the Department of Culture Arts & Leisure, along with the Arts Council, launched the Creative Industries Innovation Fund.  ‘Biosuite’ was selected for the first round of projects through this scheme, and has been going through six months of development, since the award was made. 

The partnership between Filmtrip Ltd & the Music, Sensors and Emotion (MuSE) cluster at Queens University’s Sonic Arts Research Center combines commercial knowledge with educational skills & world leading facilities.  

An established centre of excellence dedicated to the research of music technology, SARC is a unique interdisciplinary environment which has united internationally recognised experts in the areas of musical composition, performance, signal processing and Human Computer Interaction.  

Filmtrip’s award-winning production team of Gawain Morrison & Chris Martin have been involved in feature films, shorts, music videos, music production, event promotion & tours over the last 20 years. 

The MuSE team consisting of Dr Ben Knapp, Dr Miguel Ortiz Perez, Javier Jaimovich, and Niall Coghlan, have been researching emotional response reactions in relation to music performance & visual stimulus, and having 18 months of research under their belts allowed the Biosuite project to kick off at a prototype level quite quickly.

To complete the team horror feature-film writer Spencer Wright is scripting the film & Belfast-based director Phil Crothers will be directing it.

SARC’s centrepiece, the Sonic Laboratory, provides a unique space for cutting-edge initiatives in the creation and delivery of music and audio, and so it was decided that not only should a short film be produced to push audience’s emotional buttons, but that the film should be experienced in this extraordinary audio environment.

Small attachments to the audience member’s hands pick up ECG [Electrocardiogram] signals, measuring and recording the electrical activity of the heart, and GSR [Galvanic Skin Response] which measures the change in conductance of a persons skin, and is highly sensitive to emotions in people. Fear, anger, startle response, orienting response and sexual feelings are all among the emotions which may produce similar GSR responses.

These signals are captured by a computer running software, created to process the incoming data from the audience, and depending on what the audience’s response is measured to be, at any particular point, determines what changes occur in the film that they are watching.

This unique cinematic experience will allow the audience to experience changes in the score, the sound effects during scenes, the placement of audio within the SARC lab, and changes in character point of view.

The film will take approximately 15 minutes to watch, and a number of permutations will be viewed or heard depending on how the audience feels as they move from scene to scene.

A project that is operating in uncharted waters ‘Biosuite’ is allowing a lot of room for all of the creative juices to get flowing at one time, and everyone involved with the project is very excited at the potential.

Whilst keeping the focus on this project both Filmtrip and the MuSE team have their eyes on the larger picture of feature film production, gaming and location-based emotional triggers, all using the skills & tools that they are learning whilst producing this project.  The changing shape of the media landscape, from audience participation through to the blurring of media lines & boundaries, offers up a wild west range of opportunities to people and companies able to experiment in this space.

We have just confirmed with the QFT & the Belfast Festival At Queens about screening the world premiere as part of the festival in October 2010.