Jake Upfront on Recreating Iconic Nightclubs in Virtual Reality

This Saturday in VR, in AltspaceVR, you can experience two New York themed nightclubs that take inspiration from the vibrant 90s NYC nightlife, and dance and interact with people from all over the world.

VR technology is going to shake the world in a similar way the internet did. It is the natural next frontier. And we can now get a glimpse of what is to come.

I like to recreate iconic nightclubs, because they are the epitome of social interaction, the perfect scenario for a virtual reunion.

Starting out with the premise that the space you are about to recreate was a success translates into a deeper experience in VR. There is also the energy that these Clubs generated. And sometimes it feels like you can tap into this frequency, which is greatly amplified once the project reaches a certain degree of completion. It’s like a time machine, that lets you glimpse into another time and space.

From the moment I started building VR worlds, I knew that there were a number of places that no longer existed that I would have liked to experience. Social VR gives you the chance to experience these digital recreations of iconic environments, accompanied by other users from all over the world.

When I embark in one of these projects, there is always a process of gathering information, pictures, videos and interviews with people who took part in these events or places. That goes on until I can finally recreate something that resembles the original.

I also learn a lot from the architectural and design decisions that were made for these Clubs. In this search, I gain an insight into the whole atmosphere and overall experience that these venues provided, in a much deeper way than I would have obtained otherwise.

Then, over the course of several iterations, the original vibe of the Club begins to surface.

This is quite a magical moment, since I can experience it with other people. But it does take a lot of work and trial and error.

And eventually it all makes sense, why they succeed, and what I can learn from it for the next project.

^^^

NEW YORK RAVE, Saturday, May 7, 2022 from 5:59 PM to 9:30 PM (EST), AltSpaceVR, free