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Lessons from the Lab

Every Test Leaves a Clue

There are moments when you stop looking at a project through the lens of what you're building and start looking at it through the lens of what you're learning. That's where Terra Nueva feels to me today.

For years, people have quite naturally asked us what Terra Nueva is. The better question now is...

What have we learned so far?

Because that's where the real story is.

When you stand back and look at everything that's happened over the last few years, a pattern begins to emerge. What looked like individual projects at the time now feels like one continuous programme of research and development. None of it was wasted. Every livestream. Every production. Every meeting. Every test. Every conversation. They've all left us with something valuable - Evidence.

Looking back, it's remarkable how much started during one of the most difficult periods our industry has ever faced. When COVID brought touring to a standstill, nobody was thinking about creating a long-term R & D programme, as far as we are aware! The immediate priority was much simpler than that. How do we keep artists performing? How do we keep crews working? How do we keep audiences connected when they can't gather in the same room?

Those early livestreams were born out of necessity rather than strategy. They gave artists a stage when stages had disappeared, and they gave audiences something to hold onto during uncertain times. Only later did we realise something else had happened. Every stream was teaching us something. Not just about technology, but about people. How long would audiences stay engaged? What encouraged them to interact? What created a sense of community, even when everyone was watching from different parts of the world?

We weren't just broadcasting performances. We were beginning to understand digital audience behaviour. Those lessons still influence the decisions we're making today.

The next stage of that journey led us into volumetric capture. Working with Toby Jepson from the British Rock Band Little Angels and Welsh Indie Rock Band The Now, alongside our partners at Condense in Bristol, we explored what immersive performance might look like. It would have been easy to treat those projects as technical demonstrations. We didn't. We treated them as experiments and part of our R & D.

Could this technology genuinely become part of the future of live entertainment? Could it create new opportunities for artists? Could it become commercially viable? Some answers were encouraging. Others reminded us just how much work still lies ahead. And that's exactly why R & D matters.

Real research doesn't prove you're right. It shows you where you need to improve. More recently, we've produced projects including a Festival in the UK and a theatre performance in the USA. Again, we're not simply looking at viewing figures or ticket sales. We're asking deeper questions.

How do different audiences engage? What encourages participation rather than passive viewing? How can a live event continue to create value after the final encore? Those are the questions shaping Terra Nueva today.

One thing has become increasingly clear. There isn't a single technology that's going to transform the live entertainment industry. Some conversations revolve around artificial intelligence. Others focus on standard motion and markerless motion capture. Volumetric capture continues to evolve. Machine learning is opening new possibilities. Digital twins and Virtual Venues are becoming more practical. Rather than asking which technology will win, we're asking a different question. Which combination of technologies creates the best experience for artists, audiences, venues and promoters? That's a far more interesting challenge. And one that can't be answered overnight.

It's also why Dundee has become such an important part of this journey. Over recent months we've continued conversations with people across the city's creative, educational and business communities. We've spent time exploring opportunities around Abertay University's ViPRE Studios. We've continued discussions connected to CoSTAR and the exceptional facilities at their Realtime Lab at Waters' Edge. We've met people who all share something in common… Curiosity.

Nobody claims to have every answer. But everyone brings a different perspective. That kind of collaboration is where genuine innovation begins. Another conversation is gradually gathering momentum. The possibility of bringing music, gaming, community and culture together through a city-wide celebration here in Dundee. It's important to be clear. These are conversations. Not announcements. Ideas deserve time to develop. But they're exciting conversations to be having so early in our relocation to this beautiful city.

If the right partners, organisations and communities come together, there's an opportunity to create something that feels uniquely Dundee while connecting with audiences around the world. We'll continue to explore that idea over the months ahead. The same philosophy applies to virtual venues and digital twins.

We're often asked whether they're intended to replace live venues. The answer is simple. Absolutely not. Nothing replaces the feeling of standing in front of a stage, sharing an experience with hundreds or even thousands of other people. What interests us is everything that happens before the doors open and after they've closed. Can a venue remain active between events? Can artists continue engaging with their audiences? Can exclusive content, merchandise, livestreams and community all exist within one connected digital environment? Those are the questions we're trying to answer. Not because the technology exists. Because the opportunity exists.

As I look through Stu's notebooks, one thing becomes obvious. The destination hasn't really changed. The route has. Terra Nueva has evolved because every experiment has revealed another piece of the puzzle. Some ideas have moved forward. Others have been left behind. That's exactly how progress along with R & D should work.

We've now reached a stage where R & D needs to become collaboration. The foundations are in place. Years of testing have given us valuable insight.

Now we're looking to work with organisations, technology partners, universities, creative businesses and investors who can help accelerate the next phase of development. Not because we're starting. Because we're already moving.

The opportunity now is to build faster, build smarter and build together. If there's one lesson I'd take away from everything we've explored so far, it's this. The future of live entertainment won't be created by one breakthrough. It will be created through thousands of conversations, experiments and decisions made by people who are prepared to ask better questions. That's what Terra Nueva has become. A place where ideas are tested. Where assumptions are challenged. And where every experiment leaves another clue.

I'll see you in Entry Log Number 013.

Captain Scott Woldian
Storyteller and Narrator of the Terra Nueva Entry Logs