Immersive Art Experience ‘Otherworld Encounter’ Turns to Crowdfunding to Continue (Q&A)

An interview with creative director Jamie Whitlow

After debuting in Nashville last winter and conducting a spring run in Atlanta, the creators behind the immersive art exhibit Otherworld Encounter are coming back home to Nashville this summer; in order to set up their third instance, the team are asking for your help to make it happen.

The project, which has been entirely bootstrapped up to this point, is now asking for fans to become backers through a crowdfunding campaign. The team is seeking to raise $20,000 into a “community fund.”

We spoke to creative director Jamie Whitlow over email to find out more.

No Proscenium: Could you catch us up on all that’s happened with Otherworld Encounter since last fall?

Jamie Whitlow (JW): A lot has happened! We began building Otherworld Encounter in October of last year, and opened for our debut show in Nashville December 28—January 13. It felt truly amazing to build this entire 10,000 square foot exhibit in only two months.

After a break that we all needed and deserved, myself and other members of the collective started organizing upgrades to the exhibit. We were able to commission seven more artists to work on these upgrades for our show in April, and also added more performance elements. We are now gearing up for our third show, returning to Nashville July 5—21!

NP: What’s the audience response been like to the project?

JW: The response to Otherworld Encounter has been overwhelmingly positive! It’s wonderful to experience an audience immersing themselves into this world we’ve created. People definitely revert to their playful nature within Otherworld Encounter, and it really brings the environment to life.

Myself, as well as two of our other founders Earl and Annalee Kelly, have backgrounds in creating art installations for music festivals. What is so special about creating these types of installations, is witnessing people come together in an environment we created for exactly that. Being able to experience the audience respond in excitement and joy as they explore the exhibit is exactly why we all do this.

NP: Why are you starting a crowdfunding campaign now?

JW: Previous to this crowdfunding campaign, this project has been completely funded by our team, and close family members and friends. Since our conception in the fall, I feel we have gained a large amount of momentum within the creative communities of Nashville, as well as Atlanta, where we were exhibiting in April.

People are realizing that we are real people, real working artists, and our whole goal with creating this huge project is to be able to make a living off of our work, as well as provide that opportunity to other artists. I think now is a good time to start this campaign, because that mission has spread and we have gained a lot of support with it.

NP: What is your plan if the campaign fails?

JW: If the campaign fails, we still plan to follow through and continue with our Nashville show in July. This project is essentially our livelihood, and myself, as well as everyone on our team, is willing to do whatever it takes to keep making it work. We are looking at several different avenues to continue fundraising, and are bootstrapping in the meantime.

NP: What do you hope to accomplish if the campaign succeeds?

JW: Thus far, we have contributed over $100,000 directly to the employment and contracting of artists. We want to keep making this number grow, and continue to be able to pay artists fairly to create upgrades and extensions of the exhibit. We all have so many ideas to add the exhibit!

To be able to continue its growth, and pay artists fairly to do so, is our #1 priority with our funding.

Learn more about Otherworld Encounter’s crowdfunding campaign.

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