Rafal Hanzl
-
- Honorary professor
- Westerdals Department of Creativity, Storytelling and Design
- School of Arts, Design and Media
Background
Dr. Rafal Hanzl is a creative technologist with a background in fine arts (sculpture, painting and photography). He holds a PhD in Film Arts specializing in animation and special effects from The Leon Schiller Polish National Film, Television and Theatre School, Poland (2017) and completed a Norwegian Artistic Research Fellowship at The Norwegian Film School (2019) with førsteamanuensis competence.
His creative research interests in immersive storytelling through digital media grew from exploring the impact of VFX technology on modern narrative in film and interactive media. As founder of Extended Media, he has led several significant cultural projects, including medieval Akershus Castle reconstructions for the Norwegian Armed Forces Museum (2022-2024) and co-created the multimedia installation "Grønlandsport, sfinxen og «det nye lands bro»" for Oslo Museum (2025).
As a creative technologist, he has contributed to research projects including "Queens Game" (PKU - Program for kunstnarleg utviklingsarbeid 2018-2022) and "Inside the Narrative" VR research project at the University of Bergen (2023). He shares expertise in virtual reality, augmented reality, and innovative cinematic techniques with focus on practical applications in creative industries.