In Pursuit of Repetitive Beats, an interactive VR experience developed by filmmaker and artist Darren Emerson of East City Films, is coming to Belfast from 24 February to 26 March, at the Carlisle Memorial Church.
The award-winning experience, which transports audiences to the beginning of the UK’s acid house movement and the start of rave culture, sees users track down and arrive at an illegal warehouse party in Coventry in 1989 – incorporating the stories of the promoters, police officers, pirate radio stations, and secret warehouse rave-goers.
The one-hour experience, which forms part of the Belfast XR Festival, is soundtracked by rave anthems such as Orbital‘s Chime and Joey Beltram‘s Energy Flash.
Belfast XR Festival
“I am absolutely thrilled that In Pursuit of Repetitive Beats will have its Irish premiere at the Belfast XR Festival in the beautiful setting of Carlisle Memorial Church,” commented Darren Emerson, director, East City Films.
“When we decided to tour this VR experience around the UK, coming to Belfast felt like a MUST. What other city could connect to the unifying nature of dance music culture more than Belfast? Because take away the technology of VR and this is what Beats is really all about; it’s about DIY culture, bourgeoning friendships, and disparate communities coming together to connect and dance till dawn. I see Acid House as a vital moment of revolution at the end of a fractious decade; a non-violent protest in the face of the things that would seek to separate us. A quiet revolution, apart from the thumping bass.
“There is a reason that Belfast is the UNESCO City of Music, and that is because of its rich and varied expressions in music culture: one of which being its vital, and dynamic role in shaping the underground electronic dance music scene. I hope audiences come to experience In Pursuit of Repetitive Beats and experience a work that celebrates freedom, adventure, and a sense of community. A piece of work that was made with an open heart for all people to enjoy.”
Developed with the support of the BFI, National Lottery funding, and the Coventry City of Culture Trust, In Pursuit of Repetitive Beats made its debut in Coventry in 2022, and has since been experienced by audiences at BFI London Film Festival, South by Southwest Festival, Austin; Melbourne International Film Festival; IDFA Amsterdam and Geneva International Film Festival, among other events.
It has won four high-profile VR awards including the Location-Based VR Entertainment of the Year at the VR Awards 2023, the DocLab Award for Immersive Non-Fiction at IDFA 2022, the VR Award at the Viborg Animation Festival 2023, followed by winning the Best Film & Digital: Interactive Award at Adelaide Fringe in 2024.
Following the VR experience there will be a dedicated display containing archive, flyers, posters, photography, and objects exploring the local rave scene connected to Belfast.
‘One of a kind sensory experience’
Elsewhere, Deepa Mann-Kler, director of the Belfast XR Festival, said that the festival has been working for “over a year” to bring Beats to Belfast, “When I talk about Beats being an experience – it really is that – so from the moment you enter Carlisle Memorial Church, you’ll feel the same excitement and trepidation of entering a rave.
“You will walk through a neon graffiti rave corridor, where you can hear the dhum dhum dhum of the bass; to then entering a blue lit, stained glass interior of the Church where you are taken back to a very particular moment in time where you will dance with other people; to the sunrise once you have completed the virtual reality experience; to an exhibition of flyers, which includes a rich tapestry of locally sourced material; and finally a surprise, which we really don’t want to spoil for you. This is really a one of a kind sensory experience that will linger.”
More information and tickets can be found here.
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