#sensorama

Not exactly a film jukebox, but not too far off either. Sensorama was an  immersive film experience machine invented by Morton Heilig in the late 1950s/early 1960s. It showed the user 3-D stereo-sound films, while exposing them to motion and vibration effects (via the seat), wind effects, and aromas. At least one prototype machine was made in 1962, but it was never commercialized.

For more info, see:

“Morton Heilig: Inventor VR,” Hugh M. Hefner Moving Image Archive at USC,  https://www.uschefnerarchive.com/morton-heilig-inventor-vr/

Machine demo video, Hugh M. Hefner Moving Image Archive at USC, https://vimeo.com/246184069

Morton Heilig Sensorama interview by Itsuo Sakane, early 1980s, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSINEBZNCks

The Reality Files #02: Morton Heilig’s Sensorama Simulator (1962), https://medium.com/the-reality-files/the-reality-files-02-5742ae41b15e

(via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nQ28Iy31Dw)

ECHTZEIT by Sensorama

Hello and welcome!

I feel like the original disk zinesters would have been / are currently super excited about virtual reality. It used to be a sort of silly dream we had, taken seriously by the passionate few and now it’s almost within reach of all of us.

Access to this technology can be a huge challenge not only to create work for VR but to simply experience the work being done because the hardware is still developing. To everyone with a headset, or google cardboard, or super complicated Vive set up who has lugged their tech out into the world or so generously invited people into their home to share these experiences: I think we’ll look back and see that acts like these were a bigger part of the paradigm shift than we could have realized. So thank you :)

<3 AD

Mentioned in this issue:

My Room, Cabbibo (Isaac Cohen)

Cave Carving, Fernando Ramallo

Museum of GIF Art (Loop Dreams), OONI & GIPHY

Oily Smoke, Mike Tucker

Amaryllis, Mariam Zakarian

Notes on Blindness ARTE Experience & Ex Nihilo

Sensorama, Morton L. Heilig

Northway Games

Games Curious, Hand Eye Society

HUGE thanks to Sarah and Colin Northway!

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