USA TODAY Launches First Entertainment Augmented Reality Experience Ahead of Oscars

‘Oscars AR: The costumes and creators’ provides audiences with unique
access to costumes from Oscar nominated films

MCLEAN, Va.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–USA TODAY, part of Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI), today launched “Oscars
AR: The costumes and creators,” its first entertainment augmented
reality (AR) experience ahead of the 91^st Academy Awards,
offering audiences a unique up-close and personal look at the costume
designs and their creators from major nominated films.

The collaboration between the award-winning USA TODAY emerging
technology team and USA TODAY Life team gives viewers exclusive and
direct access to hear from Oscar-nominated designers from “Mary Poppins
Returns,” “The Favourite,” “Mary Queen of Scots,” “Bohemian Rhapsody,”
“Black Panther” and “BlacKkKlansman.” USA TODAY worked directly with
each of the designers to tell the story of their costumes and their
experiences on set, with an interactive, 360-degree look at the pieces
through AR.

In this experience, the emerging technology team pushed the boundaries
of innovative storytelling using the latest photogrammetry techniques to
capture and create each costume. The team worked closely with the Fashion
Institute of Design & Merchandising, collaborating with the 27^th
Annual Art of Motion Picture Costume Design team and its engineers to
shoot each costume and bring the AR experience to life for USA TODAY’s
audience.

The interactive Oscars experience quickly follows USA TODAY’s first 2019
AR release in January, an experience featuring Washington
Capitals defenseman John Carlson with audio narration by him
discussing his career as a professional hockey player. The continuation
with the release of the Oscars AR experience reflects the USA TODAY
NETWORK’s commitment to experimenting with emerging technologies and
immersive formats to engage audiences in new and different ways. More
than a dozen emerging technology projects are currently in the pipeline
for 2019.

“Unlike many other AR experiences, our goal wasn’t to use AR to tell
part of the story. Our AR experience is the story,” said Ray
Soto, Director of Emerging Tech, USA TODAY NETWORK. “Nothing demands a
more up close and personal look than the incredibly detailed and
awe-inspiring designs of this year’s Oscar costume nominees. With
multiple layers of interactivity between the user and the costume
designers, audiences can glean an almost one-on-one experience with the
creators of their favorite costumes from these Oscar nominated films.”

“Our access to the Oscar-nominated costumes and designers is what makes
this such a one of a kind experience. Partnering with the emerging tech
team has enabled us to truly bring the Oscars to life and into the hands
of our readers,” said Alison Maxwell, Managing Editor, USA TODAY Life.
“Between the exclusive sound bites with the designers, user
interactivity and detailed narration from our reporters, we’re taking
storytelling to the next level. I’m excited to see how readers will
respond.”

To view the Oscars AR experience, download the latest version of the USA
TODAY mobile app, and click from mobile devices to view on Android
and iOS
or find within the USA TODAY Life section.

About Gannett

Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI) is an innovative, digitally focused media
and marketing solutions company committed to strengthening communities
across our network. With an unmatched local-to-national reach, Gannett
touches the lives of more than 125 million people monthly with our
Pulitzer-Prize winning content, consumer experiences and benefits, and
advertiser products and services. Gannett brands include USA TODAY
NETWORK with the iconic USA TODAY and more than 100 local media brands,
digital marketing services companies ReachLocal and SweetIQ, and U.K.
media company Newsquest. To connect with us, visit www.gannett.com.

Contacts

Chrissy Terrell, 703-854-5292
Director, Corporate Communications
and Public Relations
Caterrell@usatoday.com