Munduruku

Munduruku: The Fight to Defend the Heart of the Amazon is an extraordinary experience where users are transported inside one of the Amazon’s most iconic indigenous communities, the Munduruku, at one of the most important moments in their ancient history. The Munduruku are under threat, with the government planning on building a series of dams on the Tapajos River which might destroy their homeland forever.

Considered as the next step in VR storytelling, Munduruku combines cutting edge virtual reality filmmaking and multi-sensory storytelling to fully immerse the viewer with the story that is played out within an immersive ‘pod’, designed by multi-sensory storytelling production company The Feelies, which provides users with a truly empathic, unparalleled multi-sensory virtual reality experience.

Alchemy used the latest 360 video and binaural sound technology to create the audio and visual elements of the project. Directing the action more like a theatrical production than a standard film, the members of the tribe were encouraged to make full use of the 360 space provided to carry out their day to day activities through gentle stage direction and clever placement of the camera. To create the multi-sensory elements The Feelies collected data by performing a sensory mapping of the local area – including taking a perfumer to take in the scents of the forest.  From this they created six award-winning bespoke perfumes, an infrasonic frequency track, humid atmospheres and a narrative of heat and wind.