On the Morning You Wake (to the End of the World)

The Story

On January 13th, 2018 at 8:08 am, an alert was issued to the 1.4 million citizens of Hawai'i,
‍BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII.
SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.

On January 13th, 2018 at 8:08 am, an alert was issued to the 1.4 million citizens of Hawai'i,
‍BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.

As panic took hold of the Hawaiian population, (as well as their friends and relatives across the globe), people came to understand the real, growing and urgent nature of today’s nuclear threat.

a screenshot of a text conversation between Hawaii residents. It reads "Why isn't there anything on the news or a siren." "Siren was heard in Manoa." "There was a flash on tv then that was it."

a screenshot of a text conversation between Hawaii residents. It reads "I have no clue what we're supposed to do." "It's on the news now." "What is it saying. Driving to my moms. It's not on the radio." "Stay indoors. Away from window."

A screenshot of a text message saying "My dad said at kualoa they're putting everyone in the bunker."

As Kauai resident Cynthia Lazaroff would later say, “The alert was false, but the nuclear threat is real...[it] is not a scenario, not a video game...we experienced it personally, felt the terror.”

Although nothing happened that day, everything changed.

About

On the Morning You Wake uses innovative documentary storytelling and virtual production techniques to viscerally recreate the lived experiences of people who, for 38 minutes, had to react and make impossible decisions in the face of nuclear violence.

Enter a multi-layered story world crafted by Archer’s Mark and Atlas V, creators of Notes on Blindness: Into Darkness.

Experience a visual language inspired by the structure of atomic science, listen to haunting first hand audio testimonies, the spoken words of acclaimed poet Dr. Jamaica Heolimeleikalani Osorio, and an extraordinary immersive score from Bobby Krlic (The Haxan Cloak).

For most, nuclear threat is unimaginable—out of sight, and out of our control. It feels distant compared to threats that dominate our collective consciousness from systemic racism to climate change, healthcare to global pandemic.
‍
On the Morning You Wake makes that threat proximate and uses the first-hand experience of citizens in Hawaii to make clear the fundamental injustice of a world held hostage by nuclear weapons.

A person sits at a virtual table with books in front of them, looking at a particle representation of Hawai’i with a particle explosion representing a nuclear attack

An abstract particle and textured landscape that represents a street with buildings and cars

A person rowing out to sea on a yellow, orange kayak, a small beach with palm tree is in the background

A digital recreation of a Hawaiian beach bathed in a sunrise. The beach is covered with palm trees and rocks in the distance are mountains. In the foreground are three kayaks scattered in the sand

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Help end the threat we face from nuclear weapons

I Acknowledge

The production, storage and testing of nuclear weapons is causing people and the planet harm today
The existence of nuclear weapons is unjust
Communities worldwide are being held hostage by nuclear weapons

I Recognize

I have the power to create change
I can ban the presence of nuclear weapons in my neighborhood
I don’t have to do this on my own

I'm Ready To

Learn more about the violence and oppression caused by nuclear weapons
Join others dedicated to banning nuclear weapons
Support organizations working to eliminate the threat we face from nuclear weapons

Together we have the power to reframe the threat from nuclear weapons as an urgent social justice issue, relevant to the fight against systemic oppression around the world.

RESOURCES AND ORGANIZATIONS

PRESS

"On the Morning You Wake does a phenomenal job of placing viewers into the shoes of the Hawaiian people"

Kathryn Yu, No Proscenium

“So, let's start with this: the piece itself is beautiful. It is an emotional, poetic and evocative journey into what it means to wake up one day, with the sun rising "beautiful and ominous", and have to face a situation for which no one - not even your government - has ever prepared you.”

Agnese Pietrobon, XR Must

"On the Morning You Wake (to the End of the World) is one of the most powerful experiences I’ve seen in VR, and is also one of my favorite pieces in the Sundance New Frontier 2022 selection."

Kent Bye, Voices of VR Podcast

“Deeply affective….I’ve rarely seen better use of the 360° medium.”

Austin Craig, Tech Buzz

“Using VR to help audiences re-situate themselves in space and time might be able to change the way they see the world”

Alissa Wilkonson, Vox

“Expertly crafted narrative aside, every so often I come across an #XR technique that feels like it should become a standard”

Alex Columbe, on Twitter

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