South African creative-technology talent has been part of a project that won an Emmy at the 78th awards, with Cape Town’s Virtual Worlds Company contributing to the production Uncanny Alley: A New Day, which took the prize for Outstanding Emerging Media Program.
Local studio in an international collaboration
The production began life inside the social VR platform VRChat and was developed by an independent, artist-led team in collaboration with Los Angeles-based Ferryman Collective. According to reporting by Good Things Guy, Virtual Worlds Company — led by artist and worldbuilder Rick Treweek (MetaRick) — “played a huge part” in the immersive experience that ultimately beat projects backed by major entertainment names including Blumhouse and Amazon/Bethesda.
The project blends live theatre with virtual reality. Rather than watching actors on a stage, audiences enter the virtual world, become part of the story and interact directly with performers. Two actors perform in real time, embodying 15 different characters, while audience members can explore the environment, speak with characters and influence how events unfold. That interactivity creates unpredictability, but the creative team says a theatrical script underpins each performance so the story remains coherent.
“It is co-creation, but with a strong theatrical foundation underneath it, the script protects the story. The audience makes it alive.” — Deirdre V Lyons, Ferryman Collective
Why it matters for South Africa
The Emmy recognition signals international validation for South African expertise in immersive worldbuilding and live VR theatre. It also highlights a pathway for creative practitioners to work across technology, performance and community engagement — areas that increasingly attract funding, festivals and commissioning opportunities globally.
- Creative-tech capability: The award shows South African teams can deliver complex, interactive experiences for global audiences.
- New storytelling forms: Live VR theatre challenges traditional theatre by handing agency to audiences inside a virtual environment.
- Collaboration model: Independent artist-led groups can compete with larger, commercially backed projects when they innovate on format and audience participation.
How the production works
Uncanny Alley: A New Day places participants inside a cyberpunk-themed virtual world. The audience begins by being incarcerated after protesting an update to that virtual environment — a premise that forces participants to move, listen and react within the simulated space. Two performers switch between multiple characters during each show, and the audience’s choices help shape the journey from start to finish.
| Element | Details |
|---|---|
| Production | Uncanny Alley: A New Day |
| Award | Emmy — Outstanding Emerging Media Program (78th ceremony) |
| Key collaborators | Virtual Worlds Company (Cape Town), Ferryman Collective (LA) |
| Platform origin | VRChat |
The creative director from Ferryman Collective, Deirdre V Lyons, describes the work as co-creative: a blend of scripted theatre and audience-driven improvisation. That approach demands both technical proficiency in virtual worldbuilding and theatrical skill from the performers — a combination that is not yet widely taught or funded in South Africa.
Implications and next steps
For South African practitioners, the Emmy is likely to bring increased visibility and potentially more international commissions. It may also encourage local cultural funders, festivals and educational institutions to pay closer attention to immersive media as a legitimate and exportable art form. For audiences, live VR theatre offers a new way to experience stories where personal choices matter.
While the win does not automatically resolve challenges around skills development, funding or access to high-end hardware and broadband, it creates a valuable example of what can be achieved by small, inventive teams. For a country trying to expand its creative-tech exports, the accolade is an important marker that innovation and experimentation can reach a global stage.
What to watch next: whether this recognition leads to more sustained investment and training in immersive arts in South Africa, and how local producers translate this experimental success into commercially viable projects that support a broader ecosystem of creatives and technologists.
