Calling all UK XR companies involved in gaming or creative storytelling!
StoryFutures Academy and InGame are running an accelerator that Open Inclusion is supporting along with XRAccess. Ten organisations will be selected to attend a 4-day inclusive innovation lab. From that, following a competitive pitch, two will be selected to be awarded £35k in funding to design in a user-centred way and develop additional inclusive capability within existing or near-to-market IP. Apply now! It is open to 14th March.
What will the competition provide?
The ten selected companies will have their attendance at the 4-day inclusive innovation lab fully funded. They can use that time to learn about cutting-edge innovation approaches that consider how people vary, and how that variance impacts their XR experience. Make your stories and games more delightful more consistently to more people. Understand how taking an inclusion-led perspective can help identify and then deliver on powerful, highly creative, valuable new ideas. Get time and support to practically apply these ideas to your experiences.
Two companies selected from the final pitch session at the inclusive innovation lab will then receive up to £35k each to spend designing and developing new features and capabilities within their solution in a highly user-centered way that will improve the accessibility, usability and enjoyment of disabled gamers or audiences. Engage people with lived experiences of disability with confidence, get support from experts in inclusive design and immersive technologies and improve your creative storytelling or gaming solution.
What is Open Inclusion providing?
Open is a proud partner of this accelerator. We have been working closely with InGame and StoryFutures to design and develop this fabulous programme. We are also collaborating with some incredible experts from the XRAccess community in the development of the materials for the design of the lab and support for the two funded XR organisations. Open Inclusion will be delivering two days of content in the immersive innovation lab and then supporting the final day judging the pitches. We will then support each of the funded organisations progress their solutions.
Who are StoryFutures Academy and InGame?
StoryFutures Academy is part of the National Centre for Immersive Storytelling in the UK, funded by the UK government. It is a Creative Cluster training academy to develop traditional screen industries progress into XR, and is led by Royal Holloway University of London. It has four major aims:
- Offering cutting edge creative training in immersive storytelling formats
- Providing chances to traditional screen industry talent to work in immersive
- Foster collaboration and co-production
- Offer development finance to participants
InGame is the research and development centre for the videogaming industry based in Dundee and led by University of Abertay. It is also part of the Creative Clusters Programme funded by the UK government to progress immersive technology understanding, use and positive impact in the gaming industry through product, service, and experience innovation.
Who is XRAccess?
XRAccess is a global group of immersive practitioners and enthusiasts who want to ensure that VR, AR or any other digitised reality is at minimum accessible and preferably delightfully inclusive.
XRAccess helps catalyse research, facilitate collaboration, enable practical knowledge sharing, and grow awareness of how humans differ and how those differences can be understood and included in XR experiences through better design and development. Open Inclusion is a long term strategic partner and supporter of XRAccess, particularly in its inclusive design community.
Please apply
- If you are an immersive gaming or creative storytelling organisation
- Wish to expand your current solution reach
- Want to create a more equitable and valuable product/experience
- Would like to build valuable reusable experience in inclusive immersive innovation and design
- Are based in the UK
Apply here. (this opens a new window)
SFA X InGAME – Inclusive Design for Immersive Experiences Accelerator
