Dr Tom Doig worked with XR (Extended Reality) artists Isobel Knowles and Van Sowerwine to help them create an immersive and
affecting new artwork about Australia’s unprecedented 2022 climate-change disasters: The World Came Flooding In.
Tom co-wrote and voiced his story of being flooded just six weeks after moving from Aotearoa New Zealand to Meanjin, to commence work as a Lecturer in Creative Writing (see ‘Living underwater in Brisbane’).
Isobel Knowles and Van Sowerwine used cardboard and other simple materials to painstakingly recreate the lost homes of each storyteller in miniature. Then, via photogrammetry, the rooms are translated into purposefully lo-fi virtual reality worlds.
The World Came Flooding In has its international premiere at the prestigious International Film Festival Rotterdam from 29 January to 8 February 2026. The project was recently featured in The Hollywood Reporter.
There are plans for the show to tour to Lismore in 2026 – watch this space.
Trailer: The World Came Flooding In - Trailer
Written, Directed, Co-produced and Animated by Isobel Knowles & Van Sowerwine
Featuring the stories of: Tom Doig, Antoinette O’Brien and Marina Perkovich
with flood-affected residents from Ballina, Gympie, Lismore & Maribyrnong
https://www.isobelandvan.com/the-world-came-flooding-in
