Burning Man Multiverse Is Coming!
In April and May, we brought you our first two online events, which acted as way for our community – locally and globally – to connect from a distance. And now there’s something big and magical building for the end of August: Burning Man’s Multiverse!
To find out more, and to figure out which platform you and your crew could plug into, read on and get the lowdown.
The Burning Man Multiverse & the Recognized Universes
Ways to Get Involved
– Bring Art or Mutant Vehicles
– Construct a Digital Theme Camp
– Broadcast a Live Event
– Volunteer to Help a Digital Project
Bring Art or Mutant Vehicles into Digital Worlds
Whether you have 2D or 3D art, there is a place for it in the Burning Man Multiverse. Depending on both your digital design skill level and the nature of your art, some Recognized Universes might be a better fit for you than others. We have created a decision flow chart to help you find your way along the journey into the Multiverse.
Before choosing your path, you may want to know more about how some of the Universes work. We have put together these overviews of some of their features relating to ART, and their features relating to CAMPS. Some of the Universes also have put together a brief collection of information about how to work with them:
Multiverse: http://www.clipolabs.com/multiverse/artist-submission
Build-a-Burn: http://welcome.topia.io/buildaburn
Infinite Playa: https://www.infiniteplaya.com/faq
SparkleVerse: https://sparkle.space/sparkleverse
BRCvr: http://brcvr.org/
MysticVerse: participation form
Bringing art could be as simple as submitting pictures of your work for display in a Universe, or it could be as complex as a 3D model with 100s or 1000s of polygons with different textures— even digital fire— that makes your art into something other participants can walk through and interact with. Depending on what you envision for your project, you may already have the skills you need, or you may need to work with others to build and texture 3D models. If you have the skills to render models using Unreal or Unity engine, then you may be able to work directly with the team at many of the Universes.
However, if you are like me, then you’ll need some help along the way. Spark is Burning Man Project’s platform for project collaboration. On Spark, you can post your project and your needs, and get responses from volunteers that may have the time and/or skills to help you realize your vision (post under “Multiverse”).
Construct a Digital Theme Camp
There are many ways for you to get your virtual camp “placed” in the Multiverse, as you can see in this overview of the Universes’ camp-related features. Depending on both your digital design skill level and the nature of the camp you want to create, some Recognized Universes might be a better fit for you than others.
For example, some universes have “ready to go” templates that you can use. Some have WYSIWYG tools for live building of your camp structures. Another has all of the 2019 camps already created and placed — you just need to claim your spot and broadcasting station to start broadcasting your events.
If templates aren’t your jam and you’d prefer to customize your digital camp, most Universes will accept a 2D image or 3D model of your space. Depending on what you envision for your project, you may already have the skills you need, or you may need to work with others to build and texture a 3D model – for instance, to translate a CAD file of your camp layout on playa into 3D. If you have the skills to render models using Unreal or Unity engine, then you may be able to work directly with the teams at any of the Universes. If you need technical assistance making this transition into the digital world, please consider posting to Spark for help. We even created a special category specifically devoted to the Multiverse.
If you do decide to go the custom route, please check out the flowchart above in the Art or Mutant Vehicle section of this document. This in combination with the feature comparison sheet mentioned above, should help make the decision about which Universes are the best fit for you.
You can also read brief descriptions of each Universe and submit your content directly to them by visiting the Multiverse page on Kindling.
Most Universes allow camps to stream audio and video from within your camp space – platforms like Zoom, Twitch, YouTube, and Facebook Live work well for this purpose. Once you schedule your event, please let us know about it, so we can list it on Kindling. Kindling is Burning Man’s portal for live, interactive experiences, built with a goal of making it easy for people to discover your event and participate. Submit your event through Kindling here.
And never fear, your camp is your camp (and your art is your art). Each Universe signed a licensing agreement with Burning Man Project and agreed not to use any Intellectual Property they don’t have permission to use. So just make sure to talk with any Universe you partner with to be clear about how they can use your work.
Broadcast a Live Event
You don’t have to have a digital presence to be part of the events taking place in the Multiverse! While you are certainly welcome to render your art, theme camp, or mutant vehicle in one or more of the Recognized Universes, you can also choose to broadcast a live event using more conventional means on the Internet. This is a great option for those who want to offer a workshop, class, gathering, DJ set, or other interactive experience.
To host a live event, you’ll need to determine what platform to use. Zoom, Twitch, and Facebook Live are popular choices, but you are welcome to use any platform you’d like, as long as you can provide a link for participants to reach it.
Once you schedule your event, you will want to let Burning Man know about it, so we can list it on Kindling. Kindling is Burning Man’s portal for live, interactive experiences, with a goal of making it easy for people to find your event and participate. Submit your event through Kindling using the online form.
Volunteer to Help a Digital Project
If you read the items above, then you’ll already know that some artists, mutant vehicle crews, and theme camps are going to need help taking their designs and bringing them into the Multiverse. Volunteers with digital skills ranging from Photoshop to 3D Max and Unity to Unreal Engine are needed to build the Burning Man Multiverse.
If you would like to help artists realize their vision with your digital design skills, 3D modeling, or other related talents, please fill out this form to become part of our Multiversal Support volunteer team. We’ll add you to our email list that can assist in matching your skills with specific artists and universes.
You can also look at the projects seeking volunteers at Spark. There, you can reply to any of the projects seeking volunteers and join a crew (search under “Multiverse”). If you aren’t able to find a project, please reach out to us by email at [email protected] and we’ll try to connect you with a project or Universe to put your skills to use.
2020 TEMPLE INFO FOR YOU:
https://www.kindling.burningman.org/temple
