Realities in Transition 2 – Unwritten worlds

Realities in Transition 2 – Unwritten Worlds (RiT2) is led by Seconde Nature (Francia) the Consortium comprises the following partners MEET Digital Culture Center (Italy), L.E.V. Festival (Spain), Dark Euphoria (France), V2 _ (Netherlands), Nova Iskra (Serbia), and Beta Festival (Ireland). The two-year project, funded by the European Union’s Creative Europe programme. Its international scope is further strengthened by associated partners in Brazil, Switzerland, Japan, China, and Taiwan, positioning Europe as a global leader in responsible Extended Reality (XR).

RiT2 is a European initiative that explores the multidisciplinary dimensions of Extended Reality (XR) across the creative, cultural, and artistic sectors. Building on the experience of the first cycle of Realities in Transition (2022–2025), the project aims to push the boundaries of XR as an artistic medium while addressing key sector challenges such as distribution, sustainability, and diversity.

At its core, RiT2 is structured around several strategic objectives.

• Fostering co-creation and co-production. The project promotes collaborative approaches to XR creation through collective artistic residencies. These residencies will lead to the production of five original XR works, involving 15 emerging artists who will work with five different creative technologies.
• Strengthening the circulation and distribution of XR art. RiT2 places strong emphasis on the long-term sustainability of artists, artworks, and cultural organisations an aspect often overlooked by funding programmes that prioritise production over distribution. By integrating innovative and sustainable XR practices, RiT2 encourages interdisciplinary collaboration and contributes to the transformation and resilience of Europe’s cultural and creative sectors. The project’s central theme is the digital transformation of Europe’s cultural sectors, with a strong focus on resilience and cross-disciplinary cooperation.

To translate these objectives into practice, RiT2 includes a range of initiatives. Among the most significant are:

• Artist and mentor residencies. A six-month hybrid programme combining online and in-person activities, hosted in several European cities—Rotterdam, Milan, Marseille, and Dublin—as well as within the Metaverse.
• International XR Camps. Four three-day events in Madrid, Avignon, Dublin, and Milan designed as collaborative laboratories where artists and institutions can exchange knowledge and develop ideas through collective intelligence.
• The use of virtual worlds. The project will use Overte, a European open-source platform designed for online gatherings and mentoring sessions, alongside VRChat, which will host the experimental creation of an artistic virtual world.
• Sustainability and greening practices. RiT2 integrates environmentally conscious approaches by reducing its carbon footprint through cooperative residency models, shared technical equipment, and the use of metaverse environments to limit the need for physical travel.