Virtual/Augmented Reality as the Ultimate Empathy Machine with Filmmaker Gabo Arora

Gabo Arora is on the frontier of a new and exciting artistic medium - one you may not even know exists. He is among the visionaries leveraging virtual and augmented reality, and artificial intelligence, as tools in the art of filmmaking, the efficacy of storytelling, and the progress of positive social change. In this episode of Stories of Transformation, hear Gabo’s story of going from a boots-on-the-ground humanitarian, working in conflict zones around the world and documenting his experiences, to founding the creative arts studio LIGHTSHED, whose mission is to combine immersive reality with real-world change.

In their own words, LIGHTSHED aims to “...shed light on the lives of everyday people struggling to overcome today’s structural inequalities. Because we believe that immersive storytelling leads to empathy - and empathy leads to action."

As a young man, Gabo's passion for humanitarian work found him working on the ground in conflict zones around the world, documenting his experiences through film. When he found out he was going to become a father, Gabo decided it was time to put his more creative endeavors on the back burner in favor of a more stable, centralized career. He got a job at the United Nations, eventually becoming a senior advisor to the secretary general. While his work at the UN was still technically in the realm of humanitarianism, Gabo found himself growing tired of the bureaucratic methods through which the international organization operated.

Over time, Gabo became disillusioned to the formulaic approach the UN took in their efforts, and he knew as well as anyone that their collective efforts were proving to be largely ineffective. Though the stability of the career was inviting, and even though he seemed to have “made it” in the traditional sense of the word, Gabo was unsatisfied with the work he was doing. Through a culmination of other factors, Gabo knew it was at that point or never that he redirect his efforts back to his creativity. His idea would come to manifest itself as the utilization of cutting-edge technologies to break new ground in the way we convey stories.

With empathy as the emotion in mind, Gabo set out to offer people experiences unlike any other - an opportunity to see, hear, feel, and even communicate with parts of the world that are otherwise, to the average person, unreachable. To convey the day-to-day experience of those places that are in such dire need of understanding. Though his portfolio at LightShed is already vast, Gabo is just getting started with his work. As you’ll hear in this conversation, Gabo Arora and his team are more excited than ever about the potential of using technology as a means of eliciting empathy, and promoting meaningful action.

For full show notes
https://www.baktashahadi.com/podcast

Connect with Gabo Arora
Website: https://www.gaboarora.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/gaboarora?s=20
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabo-arora-b7905011/

Resources
Experience Gabo Arora’s first VR film, Clouds Over Sidra
https://www.with.in/watch/clouds-over-sidra/

Learn more about LIGHTSHED - Gabo Arora’s creative technology studio
https://lightshed.io/

More information on the VR short film Flesh And Sand

Flesh and Sand

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Credits
Hosted by: Baktash Ahadi
https://www.baktashahadi.com

Produced by: Joseph Gangemi
https://www.linkedin.com/in/joseph-gangemi-audio/

Digital Marketing & Media by: Katherine An
https://www.linkedin.com/in/katherine-a-91081b56/

Theme music by: Qais Essar
www.therabab.com

Artwork by: Masheed Ahadi
https://www.LinkedIn.com/in/masheed

Episode Music Credits
"Reflections" by Swirling Ship
"Mourning Our Loved Ones" by Sebastian Borromeo
"New World" by Ian Post