The idea is simple: the democratization of interactive video storytelling. The ability to create rich, immersive multimedia should not be limited to large organizations with large budgets. And large organizations should have a way to scale their interactive video storytelling without having to worry about one-off software development stalling creativity. Verse solves both problems elegantly and inexpensively.

Verse is an HTML-5 cloud-based software platform comprised of a content management system and video player. It works equally well on desktop or mobile device (Android & iOS).

Creators upload their media assets into the system and then manipulate them at will — connecting video to video via text links or hotspots, making chapters, developing chose-your-own-adventure style narratives, building video slideshows, or even interactive interviews, where viewers ask questions in the order they want.

No coding is required. Ever.

The resulting work can be embedded in almost any web site, or served as a stand-alone video-only microsite.

In the past 6 months, we worked on a number of very successful projects with partners ranging from The North Face to Grey to The New Yorker to Newsweek, on topics from Mt. Everest to Flint, Michigan. We were recently honored with two Pictures Of The Year International awards for interactive documentaries we produced.

We've now opened the tools to the general public. The system was designed so that anyone could learn to craft beautiful work in just minutes. Our hope is to finally fuse the interactivity and choice of the Internet with the emotional power and engagement of video, and give that ability to anyone with an idea for a story and a camera. We can't wait to see what they do next.

For two decades, creating interactive video has been a laborious, expensive process dominated by technologists, not creatives. Verse changes all of that. For the first time, anyone can create elegant, engaging interactive video inexpensively and quickly — with no coding.

Our content management system is intuitive and can be mastered in minutes. That allows creative people to focus on storytelling — not software. We hope Verse frees people to experiment and push the boundaries of interactive video as never before, to tell stories as never before. That's our goal.

As multimedia journalists, Verse co-founders Antonio Bolfo and Michael Lanza saw limitations in how filmmakers, photographers and artists could share their stories. Traditional online formats felt incomplete and underdeveloped and they knew there had to be a better way. They assembled a team of experts with deep experience across news, gaming, film and advertising.

The resulting platform sets a new standard for artful storytelling that combines emotional impact with measurable and meaningful engagement.

Subscriptions to use the Verse tools start at just $24.99 a month.