Image credit: From left to right: Esen K. Tütüncü, Scarlett Kim, Omid Zarei and Marco Cermusoni
In this episode of SIGGRAPH Spotlight, SIGGRAPH 2026 Spatial Storytelling Chair Esen K. Tütüncü is joined by Scarlett Kim, Omid Zarei, and Marco Cermusoni to explore the role of emergent technologies in narratives. Drawing from their diverse creative and technical practices, the conversation examines how storytelling is evolving across mediums — from immersive and interactive formats to spatial and experiential narratives — and how new technological waves are reshaping authorship, audience engagement, and the relationship between story and experience.
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About Our Guests
Esen K. Tütüncü is a creative coder, immersive artist, and researcher working at the intersection of XR, Human-Computer Interaction, and Neuroscience. She is currently a Research Scientist at Autodesk Research. Previously, she directed and produced two mini-documentaries. Between 2018 and 2020, she was part of TDA Global Cycling, participating in long-distance cycling expeditions across West Africa and Southeast Asia while documenting the journey. Her work has been exhibited at the Museum of Science, Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona, Sónar Festival, and Espronceda Institute of Art & Culture. In addition to her artistic practice, she holds a PhD from the University of Barcelona’s Institute of Neurosciences. She previously lectured at CITM and currently teaches Creating Immersive Narratives at ELISAVA.
Scarlett Kim is a director and producer innovating the intersection of live performance and immersive media. A polymath, Scarlett creates participatory experiences through collaborative worldbuilding, drawing from theatre, XR, game, and ritual. She is Executive Creative Producer of Center for Unclassifiable Technologies & Experiences (C.U.T.E.), and co-founded Worlds in Play and the Independent XR Distribution Coalition. Recently, she was an interdisciplinary fellow at Royal Shakespeare Company, visiting artist at Stanford University, and Director of Innovation & Strategy at Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Scarlett was honored on the XLIST 2025, a celebration of the 100 most creative visionaries in the experiential economy. MFA, CalArts. BA, University of Chicago.
Omid Zarei is an award-winning realtime producer creating immersive stories that explore the unknown while staying grounded in human experience. His work combines cutting-edge emerging technologies with an analog, human approach, embracing the imperfections that makes audiences experience raw emotions.
His immersive projects have premiered at Venice Immersive, SXSW, IDFA, AWE, and presented internationally at SIGGRAPH U.S. (VR Theater), SIGGRAPH Vancouver (Spatial Storytelling), NewImages, FIVARS among others; receiving several awards including “Best XR Theater in Show” at SIGGRAPH Asia.
Marco Cermusoni builds and scales experiences based on spatial technologies. After writing his first scientific article on the topic of virtual worlds in 2009, he has been following this passion ever since. With half a decade of experience running and scaling projects and a masters focused on XR production, he started Kreis Immersive, a boutique XR production company. With its own social VR stack and MR production team, they service clients and brands in the arts and culture industry.
