Probably the first project that has been called an “interactive documentary”. This is the result of an exploration from Apple’s Multimedia Lab (1989) on how a digital interface could give a feeling of space. “Hot spots” allowed the creation of a navigable “hyper picture” – a first shift towards interactive maps, but also the beginning of spatial interfaces and navigation.

One of Florian Thalhofer’s first Korsakow projects, the [LoveStoryProject] is a growing collection of stories and thoughts about love. Since the topic is such a universal one, linking between one person and another feels fairly intuitive. My own shift: it made me realize that most hyperlink navigations force the user to take decisions he/she does not want to take. In the [LoveStoryProject], clicks are emotional explorations rather than narrative choices, so it works better (for me).

A visual storytelling experiment: by taking one photo every 5 minutes, and agglomerating them all on a digital navigable canvas, Jonathan Harris explores how data visualization can deliver both the macro-story, and the micro-story, of him whale hunting with a family of Eskimos. Time navigation is possible, but one can also navigate by colour, emotion and character. An aesthetic and conceptual shift in narrative interfaces.

An exploration of the city that mixes participatory narrative, mobile technology and cycling. A hybrid social space where the private and the public are intertwined. An example of how locative narratives can become self-explorations that change our perception of the physical world around us. A real aha moment for me...

An ecosystem of video interviews with hundreds of leading thinkers in the arts, sciences and technology, covering a wide range of topics. The graphical representation of our user’s journey - on the bottom of the screen - is one of the first interfaces that I have seen that succeed at navigating a huge database of interviews giving a feeling of coherence.

Made as an interactive proposition on the side of a full length documentary, Dreams of your life is a dialogue, a psychological test, an internal monologue, a confession… and a proof that intimacy and introspection are possible through an i-doc. When change comes from a moment of self-reflection…

The first i-doc interface that clearly speaks by itself. “Interface is content”, says Alexandre Brachet (Upian)… Gaza-Sderot acquires meaning, and generates emotional impact, through its interface.

The NFB, and Kat Cizek, show to the rest of the world that i-docs are a mature form of storytelling. Their umbrella project Highrise constantly experiments with the form creating new spaces of reflection and new styles of representation. An evolving exploration through living documentaries…

The graphic novel becomes interactive: Operation Ajax has blurred the lines between comics and i-docs. A whole new genre is born…

A linear audio narrative empowered by an interactive visual interface: as the story unfolds the user interacts with a 3D graphical map, acquiring a feeling of apparent freedom that is essential to the unfolding of the story. The novelty: to use the interface as a tool to position the user in a specific emotion.

Scrolling navigation at its best: a complex visual style that maintains integrity and engenders curiosity… “desirability” can work in an i-doc interface…

After Prison Valley David Dufrense pushes the docu-game style to another level: an interactive fresco of a city where the user can influence the outcome of the story. In Fort McMoney immersion is used as a drive to explore, and agency as a drive to change the city through participation.