"I think technology has gotten to the point [where] people are excited about it. They're going to get the [virtual reality] headsets, especially mobile headsets. The biggest overarching thing is just creating enough content so we can have what I call critical mass of content in 2015. So when people get their [VR] headsets, there is great content they can view, but also fresh content coming every day, every week, so they keep coming back." - Jens Christenson, CEO Jaunt

VR Hackathon, NYC

In partnership with NYVR, TimeWave launches the VR Hackathon on July 10-12, 2015. Hosted by the Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP) at New York University, the hackathon will take place on Floor 4 of NYU Tisch at 721 Broadway, NYC 10003.

The VR Hackathon will provide a lab environment for the experimentation and innovation of virtual reality – experiences, storytelling and games.

The intense two-day format enables people with diverse skillsets to come together, conjure up and prototype concepts for virtual reality and other immersive technologies.

Awards will be given to outstanding Projects as judged by Michael Jung, SVP, Creative Development for Walt Disney Imagineering Creative Entertainment, Tony Award-winning Broadway producer Pun Bandhu, producer Steven Tabakin of Tashtego Films, and other LoNyLa advisors with profile.

Theme: Mythos and Moxie

Create. Use. Mash. Hack. Distribute. Disperse. Today, media creators of wide-ranging backgrounds - expert to amateur - use sophisticated tools that are often cheap and easily accessible. While technology evolves at an accelerated rate, the fundamental tenets of story (Greek: "mythos") remain the same. The theatre that moved Greeks to tears in 700 BC established rules of narrative that modern writers use to sweep audiences off their feet. Stories transcend technology and strike the human heart. They allow us to glimpse universal truths as well as lead us to self discovery. They trigger our imagination and invite us into rich storyworlds - deep space, the earth's core or leagues under the sea - that can exist only in our minds.

In the 2015 VR Hackathon, we encourage participants to probe VR with an eye on storytelling. Whether it's a scene from a storyworld or a quirky and memorable character, we hope to see VR content that pushes beyond shoot-em-ups and takes users/audiences on an emotional journey. We also support media creators with a little moxie - courage - to try things that have yet to be tried. In every project that doesn't quite work or fails, something is gained or learned. After losing 8 elections, failing in business twice and enduring a nervous breakdown, Lincoln became one of America's great presidents. He never quit.