Finding Frida Uses VR To Rediscover A Forgotten Textile Artist

Finding Frida is a 41-minute VR documentary at Venice Immersive using photorealistic 3D scans and animated artwork to explore the life of forgotten Norwegian textile artist Frida Hansen.

A miniature Art Nouveau villa appears in front of you before expanding to full scale. Inside, photographs, objects and woven artwork become portals into the life of Norwegian textile artist Frida Hansen.

That’s the premise of Finding Frida, a 41-minute VR documentary experience from director Hilde K. Kjøs that’s now being shown in competition at Venice Immersive.

UploadVR can exclusively reveal a new trailer for Finding Frida below.

Stepping Into Frida Hansen’s Art

Finding Frida is guided by Hansen’s great-great-granddaughter Cecilie Levy, who also wrote the experience’s original story and script. Hansen was an internationally recognized textile artist during her lifetime, but her work later largely faded from public awareness.

Rather than presenting that history as a conventional VR documentary, Finding Frida builds its environments around Hansen’s life and artwork. Archival photographs, a gramophone and her woven works become portals into different parts of her story. A lush garden, for example, withers as the experience explores Hansen’s bankruptcy and personal loss before moving toward her artistic reawakening.

The production combines photorealistic 3D scans, animated artwork and dreamlike projections with an original score and reworked foley. Voice-over material is drawn from interviews with Hansen and contemporary historical sources.

Finding Frida is Kjøs’s first VR project, though she has been exploring the medium since 2019 alongside her documentary and photography work. Producer Bjørn-Morten Nerland has more than 15 years of experience creating immersive projects and founded RippleX Studios, a production company focused on VR, spatial storytelling and interactive experiences.

Finding An Audience After Venice

For now, seeing Finding Frida isn’t as simple as downloading it onto a headset.

The experience is premiering at Venice as an XR installation, though its press notes also list PCVR and standalone formats. There is currently no announced home release.

A representative for the project tells UploadVR that Venice is the starting point for Finding Frida’s international launch. A festival and exhibition run is planned in Norway and elsewhere, while the team is also exploring distribution partnerships.

Finding Frida is being shown in competition at Venice Immersive, which runs through September 12 as part of the 83rd Venice International Film Festival.