26.03.2026

XR DAY 2026: Immersion | Kunst | Performance

EN | Internal events

XR DAY 2026: Immersion | Kunst | Performance

FABW and ADK explore digitally Extended Realities

Date: Friday, April 10th
Time: 9:00-18:00
Location: Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg (FABW) und Akademie für Darstellende Kunst Baden-Württemberg (ADK)

On XR Day, Akademie für Darstellende Kunst und Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg will offer insights into the diverse applications of eXtended Reality (XR). Keynote speeches and hands-on experiences with virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and mixed reality (MR) demonstrate the broad spectrum of what can be achieved with non-linear, user-controlled (XR) technologies in film, theater, media, art, and industry—and where new fields of application are emerging.

Two other FABW institutes are also involved: the Animationsinstitut and the newly founded Carl Laemmle Institut for Research & Media Innovation.

Keynote presentations in the morning:

9:00h: Welcome
  • Prof. Volker Helzle (Head of Carl Laemmle Institut CLI)
  • Prof. Ludger Engels (Artistic and managing director ADK)
  • Ilja Mirsky (Dramaturge)
9:10 h: WHAT THE FOX – being a wild animal in the city:

In this VR experience, users roam through the city at night on the paws of a red fox, gaining a new perspective on urban life. WHAT THE FOX explores the latest technologies in Gaussian splatting. Alex Herrmann and Alec Barth (jyotifilm) discuss this, as well as interdisciplinary teamwork between art, science and technology.

9:30 h: MAIA im CyberLÄND: How AI-avatars rethink Storytelling, Community und value Creation

Frank Dürr presents MAIA, the 3D avatar from CyberLÄND. She demonstrates how AI-powered characters combine immersive experiences, community interaction, and digital business models.

9:50 h: REVERSE TURING TEST – How AI-systems can identify humans:

Five people in a train compartment travel with a group ticket for AIs – but it turns out one of them must be human. Berlin-based developer Tore Knabe has flipped the script on the test the computer science pioneer Alan Turing's proposed in 1950: It is not humans who identify AI, but AI systems that identify humans.

10:10 h: Camerawork for Virtual Production – How camera, light and space merge anew in the digital realm:

For Matthias Bolliger, cinematographer and lecturer at FABW, virtual production is not merely a technical toolset, but an expanded form of cinematic thinking: visual composition, lighting design, scenography, performance and real-time visualisation merge to form a new, malleable space.

10:30 h: Breakfall – Capturing spontaneous moments:

Frederik Stapf and Raphael Tonn, students at the FABW Animationsinstitut, explain how to transform improvised movement into an animated dance film.

11:00 h: EGON SCHIELE. A Personal Encounter – a journey into the life of an artist in Vienna around 1900:

Gerda Leopold’s realistic VR experience is a time travel to key moments that influenced Egon Schiele's art. In his final hours, the artist looks back on his life, talks to users, and asks questions. The answers influence the course of the story.

11:20 h: TREMENS – Integrating Live Performance and Virtual Reality on stage in a Shakespearian Play (excerpt):

Inspired by Shakespeare's “Timon of Athens,” Munich's Residenztheater has developed the XR experience TREMENS. At XR Day, Eric Joris from the Belgian media art collective CREW will present an excerpt: the audience will immerse themselves in flowing, aesthetically fascinating architectures and encounter interactive avatars. The boundaries between physical stage presence and virtual experience become blurred.

11:40 h: AniTrailer / AniPlay – Teamwork, technology and immersive media:

Over a four-month period, student teams at the FABW Animationsinstitut create an animated trailer project or an interactive experience. Diana Arellano (Senior Lecturer TD), Clara Deitmar (Trailer/Play), Sam Matsa and Lennart Haak provide an insight into collaborative workflows, XR technologies and virtual production approaches.

12 h: XR in Baden-Württemberg – the Carl Laemmle Institut as a bridge between "creative" und "industries":

The newly established Carl Laemmle Institute (CLI) at FABW is launching with two funded research projects, VISTA and IMRL. Both focus on eXtended Reality at the interface  between the creative industries and other sectors. CLI director Volker Helze discusses  the relevance of innovative media technologies for the region and beyond – and the role  of the institute in collaboration with partners.

 

XR experiences live on site from 2 pm:

TREMENS
Integrating Live Performance and Virtual Reality on stage in a Shakespearian Play (excerpt)

Inspired by Shakespeare's “Timon of Athens”, Munich's Residenztheater has developed the XR experience TREMENS. At XR Day, the Belgian media art collective CREW will present an excerpt: the audience can immerse themselves in flowing, aesthetically fascinating architectures and encounter interactive avatars.

FATE OF THE MINOTAUR – Location-based VR Experience Developed at Filmakademie’s Animationsinstitut

The players embody the role of human sacrifices from Athens who are sent into the labyrinth of the Minotaur by Minos, King of Crete. Should they kill the Minotaur or spare the troubled creature’s life? The content can be experienced in various immersive stages, depending on the technical and physical conditions on site.

EGON SCHIELE. A Personal Encounter – a journey into the life of an artist in Vienna around 1900

Gerda Leopold’s realistic VR experience is a time travel to key moments that influenced Egon Schiele's art. In his final hours, the artist looks back on his life, talks to users, and asks questions. The answers influence the course of the story.

REVERSE TURING TEST – How AI-systems can identify humans

Five people in a train compartment travel with a group ticket for AIs – but it turns out one of them must be human. Berlin-based developer Tore Knabe has flipped the script on the test the computer science pioneer Alan Turing's proposed in 1950: It is not humans who identify AI, but AI systems that identify humans.

WHAT THE FOX – being a wild animal in the city

In this VR experience, users explore a nighttime city through the eyes—and paws—of a red fox, discovering urban life from a completely new perspective. WHAT THE FOX explores cutting-edge Gaussian Splatting technology.

MAIA in CyberLÄND

MAIA is an interactive 3D companion in CyberLÄND – Baden-Württemberg’s ecosystem for the Industrial Metaverse: connected digital spaces for industry, research, and the creative sector.

In the XR experience, she makes technologies such as VR, AR, and AI immediately tangible. She guides users through virtual worlds, explains key concepts, and provides orientation in the digital space.

LIMBO

In the interactive installation LIMBO, visitors are invited to playfully explore their most meaningful memories in a conversation with an artificial intelligence, while reflecting on how memories shape our personal beliefs and influence us as a society.

LICHTUNG/CLEARING

In LICHTUNG/CLEARING, you enter a sleeping world that gradually awakens through your interactions.

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