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Two projects and an award for Onassis ONX at the SXSW 2025 in Texas

The SXSW Festival took place this year from 7 March to 14 March, 2025, in Austin, Texas.

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Onassis ONX members participated in the 2025 edition of SXSW XR, the immersive storytelling platform within the South by Southwest Film & TV Festival, presenting two standout projects that reflect the evolving possibilities of immersive media: “In the Current of Being” (2025; 18 minutes) by Cameron Kostopoulos, World Premiere; XR Experience Competition, Winner of the Agog Immersive Impact Award & “EchoVision” (2024; 15 minutes) by Jiabao Li, U.S. Premiere; XR Experience Spotlight.

Showcasing bold storytelling through emerging technologies, these works are part of SXSW’s mission to highlight the future of digital interactivity and immersive filmmaking. With “In the Current of Being” receiving the Agog Immersive Impact Award, Onassis ONX continues to support artists breaking new ground in spatial narrative, emotional resonance, and technological experimentation. SXSW remains one of the leading festivals for cross-industry innovation, offering a platform where creators, technologists, and cultural leaders converge to shape the future of storytelling.

Image: “In the Current of Being” courtesy of Cameron Kostopoulos

Onassis ONX member Cameron Kostopoulos’ “In the Current of Being” is a haptic VR experience that shares the true story of Carolyn Mercer, a survivor of electroshock conversion therapy aimed at 'correcting' her gender identity. Through wearable haptic vests, sleeves, and gloves, participants physically connect to the rhythm of Carolyn’s heartbeat, the cadence of her breath, and the tremors of the procedures she endured. Her journey confronts the inhumanity of these practices and highlights the extraordinary strength it takes to live authentically.

“In the Current of Being” received the Agog Immersive Impact Award.

Image: “EchoVision” courtesy of Jiabao Li

Jiabao Li’s “EchoVision” is a mixed reality experience that allows participants to experience the world of bats using sound visualization. With a series of custom-designed, bat-shaped headsets from the open-source HoloKit, people can echolocate like bats. People scream and see the environment bouncing back to navigate in the darkness. With AI, it is possible to correlate bat calls with specific behaviors such as mating or kissing; composing these AI-categorised bat calls into baby bat lullabies, love songs, etc., and set them against their natural habitats. Inspired by Thomas Nagel's “What Is it Like to Be a Bat?”, “EchoVision” delves into the mystery of understanding the experiences of other species.

Artist Bios:

Cameron Kostopoulos is an award-winning immersive creator, combining intimacy with technology to create deeply transformative experiences. Their debut experience “Body of Mine” was the recipient of the Producers Guild of America Innovation Award, SXSW Special Jury Award, a BAFTA Student Award, Best XR at Games for Change, and more. They are the Founder & CEO of Kost, a storytelling collective utilizing immersive technology to help us better understand ourselves, the world around us, and our fellow human beings. They hold a BFA in Film & TV Production from the prestigious USC School of Cinematic Arts and an MA from ASU’s Narrative & Emerging Media Program.

Jiabao Li creates works addressing climate change, interspecies co-creation, humane technology, and perceptions. Her mediums include wearable, robot, AR/VR, projection, performance, software, installation. In Jiabao’s TED Talk, she uncovered how technology mediates the way we perceive reality. She is a member of NEW INC Creative Science at the New Museum. Jiabao is a Tenure Track Assistant Professor at The University of Texas at Austin. Her lab explores the intersection of art, design, technology, and biology. She graduated from Harvard GSD with a Master of Design in Technology with Distinction and thesis award.

Jiabao is the recipient of numerous awards, including iF Design Award, AACYF 30 Under 30, Falling Walls, NEA, STARTS Prize, Fast Company, Core77, IDSA, A’ Design Award, Webby Award, Cannes World Film Festival Best VR short Award. Her work has been exhibited internationally, at Ars Electronica, Today Art Museum Biennial, SIGGRAPH, Milan and Dubai Design Week, Shanghai Ming Contemporary Museum, ISEA, Anchorage Museum, OCAT Contemporary Art Terminal, CHI, Donghu Shan Art Museum, MOOD Museum of Design, Alaska State Museum. Her work has been featured on Fast Company, Art Forum, Business Insider, Bloomberg, CCTV, Yahoo, South China Morning Post, TechCrunch, Domus, Yanko Design, Harvard Political Review, The National, Leonardo, iF World Design Guide, Exceptional ALIEN.

About SXSW:

South By Southwest dedicates itself to helping creative people achieve their goals.

Founded in 1987 in Austin, Texas, SXSW is best known for its conference and festivals that celebrate the convergence of the interactive, film & television, and music industries.

An essential destination for global professionals, the event features sessions, showcases, screenings, exhibitions, and a variety of networking opportunities.

SXSW proves that the most unexpected discoveries happen when diverse topics and people come together.

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