Is virtual reality here to stay?

Participants try out the VR experience

Virtual reality (VR) films have recently been introduced into the film festival circuit, making waves in the New Frontier section of Sundance Film Festival, having its own market and competition segment in the Venice Film Festival and its largest Asian appearance in the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF). BIFF held VR related conferences and screenings this year, a start to a long-term commitment to develop VR cinema [1].

VR cinema allows the viewer to have a 360 degree viewing experience by rotating his head, which is attached to a headset. This freedom in choosing which angles and perspectives to watch from personalises their viewing experience. Thus, all viewers have different experiences even if they are witnessing the same film [5]. As audience members have direct control over their line of vision, VR directors use visual cues to guide their attention and emphasise key images [4]. Due to its unique medium, VR films abandoned traditional filmmaking techniques like cuts and frames and use long and slow tracking shots instead. There is minimal editing and a “leap cut” is used to transport the audience from one part of the scene to another, as signalled by a “whoosh” sound [4]. As the viewer is suspended directly within the action, the fourth wall is constantly broken and the viewer is very much present and interacting with the characters, without the barrier of a movie screen.

The criteria of a good VR film is similar to its traditional film counterparts, as it is essentially about storytelling. Despite the advanced technology that VR encompasses, it can be seen as merely another medium to tell a story and develop characters that feel real to the audience. Baobab Studios, a Silicon Valley startup that specialises in constructing VR experiences, is focused on “story first” rather than tampering with technological advancements in the field [3].

Baobab’s first animated VR short Invasion! has recently won a partnership with Roth Kirschenbaum Films to be developed into a feature-length film. This testifies to its popularity among audiences, mainly due to the personable nature of the main bunny character which audiences can dance and play with [3]. Hence, as stories are heart of all films, the same goes for VR films. The success of a VR film is determined by the narrative and its impact on the viewer. In a personal interview with Kane Lee, content producer of Baobab Studios, he emphasises the importance of the narrative, claiming that “good storytelling always trumps everything”.

Therefore, despite the visible differences that VR has compared to traditional film, the core tenets of storytelling should not be neglected. VR is capable of providing viewers with a disembodied experience, one where they are able to forget their real-world problems and immerse themselves in a character’s life for the duration of the film. As mentioned in a personal interview with Vladimir Todorovic, a speaker at BIFF’s VR conference, this transcendental experience is a form of escapism for the viewer. Hence, VR’s immersive features pulls the audience into the world of the story, enhancing the draw of the narrative.

Film still of sex worker in Bloodless

The interactive nature of VR facilitates an emotional connection between characters and the viewer, activating the viewer and heightening his viewing experience. Bloodless, a VR film currently touring the international film festival circuit, enables the viewer to experience the character’s sentiments and empathise with her plight. The use of VR in Bloodless enables viewers to be in close proximity with the victim and take her place, thus sympathising with her as she is abused, rather than a detached observation of the situation if a traditional film medium was used [5]. Therefore, VR eradicates the actor-audience barrier and generates authentic responses from the viewer.

In VR films, the breaking of the fourth wall in VR films is heightened. As the viewer is situated directly within the film’s world, he willingly suspenses his disbelief and is convinced that the character is in direct conversation with him. In feature films when the fourth wall is broken, the effect is not as long-lasting or strong [3]. This aids in enhancing the realistic nature and emotional appeal of VR films. Therefore, the interactivity guaranteed by VR allows viewers to become emotionally attached to the characters depicted, thus intensifying their viewing experience. Lee reiterates that the heart of VR filmmaking is having an experience “so real, present and immersive and that we believe they are there”. This displacement from real life and complete immersion into virtual reality pulls the viewer closer to characters on a personal level than one would in a theatre, thus generating a meaningful viewing experience for audiences.

Nonetheless, as the medium is still in its early stages, there are limitations to its potential. This includes the discomfort and cost caused by the cumbersome headset. VR users are known to get headaches or feel nauseous after using the headsets for an extended period of time, hence VR episodes last for a few minutes and cannot extend to a feature-length running time [4]. The cost of the headset is a factor that limits VR’s accessibility to the masses, even though mobile VR is increasingly popular as it is more affordable [3].

Furthermore, VR films are criticised to have the tendency to devalue narrative and produce uninteresting storylines as they are more preoccupied with the tricks and technological aspects of the medium [3]. Image quality is also compromised as unlike a traditional film, artificial lighting cannot be used due to the use of a 360 degree camera, thus VR cinema is criticised to be of low quality [3]. BIFF’s VR features, documentaries, animations this year were criticised to have bland narratives and were randomly programmed, reflective of how certain VR films overemphasise the novelty of the medium rather than content. As VR films are still in its early stages, it has not been integrated fully into film festivals but serve as a side section that complements the main program. Therefore, VR films are a “marketing gimmick” for film festivals, whom have not fully tapped on the potential of VR films or developed programs well enough that would reflect this medium’s strength.

The future of VR is debatable, raising questions as to whether it is sustainable in the long run. Corporations like Microsoft and Facebook are investors in the VR industry, which is estimated to gain US$75 billion a year in revenues by 2021 [5]. This support from large players shows the faith placed in the medium to bring change to cinema and to tell stories in powerful ways. Park Jin, the organiser of BIFF’s VR section, described VR as the "future of cinema”[5]. VR’s appeal and transition into the mainstream in the future is likely if the story is captivating and if solutions can be made to the aforementioned limitations. However, VR skeptics have voiced out that the medium will always work best in the gaming world and visions for the future of VR are more inclined towards gaming rather than films [2]. The rapid development of gaming equipment makes gamers more receptive towards technological advancements whereas traditional feature films have been around for so long that it will be difficult for audiences to welcome new changes.

Additionally, VR experiences are currently a solo activity which could discourage viewers from using the medium regularly. Watching traditional films in a movie theatre with other audience members is a social activity as audiences can see, hear and respond to the reactions of other audience members, thus making their experiences a shared one [2]. For VR, it has not yet been explored how audiences can interact with each other yet as it isolates individual audiences, particularly with the use of the headset [2]. It is challenging for VR to offer something unlike the communal atmosphere that theaters offer. This limitation makes it disorienting if VR were to be used in a public setting, as audiences would be having individual experiences despite congregating together.

In Lee’s words, VR seeks to “combine the empathy of cinema with the motivation of real life to want to act in these experiences but also witness a beautiful story develop”. VR combines the best of all mediums, giving viewers the opportunity to interact first-hand with the narrative but also sit back and appreciate the world crafted. VR is in its early stages and has room for improvement, hence it is unknown whether it would take flight in the mass market in the future or evolve into other form of technologies. Nonetheless, VR is another medium for meaningful stories to be told and experiences to be created and will remain for some time.

[1] Kang, Yoona. "Asia's Biggest VR Cinema Events will be Held at BIFF 2017". July 19, 2016. Accessed November 30, 2017, from https://hapskorea.com/asias-biggest-vr-cinema-events-will-held-biff-2017/

[2] Conditt, Jessica. "Virtual reality is not the (immediate) future of film." Engadget. July 14, 2016. Accessed November 30, 2017. https://www.engadget.com/2015/03/16/virtual-reality-film-gaming/.

[3] Wong, Steven. "Baobab Studios Expands VR Entertainment With Bunny Power." AListDaily. October 22, 2016. Accessed November 30, 2017. http://www.alistdaily.com/media/baobab-studios-expands-vr-entertainment-bunny-power/.

[4] Marantz, Andrew. "Lights, Camera, Virtual Reality!" The New Yorker. July 10, 2017. Accessed November 30, 2017. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/04/25/making-movies-with-virtual-reality.

[5] Lee, Youkyung. "Director turns to virtual reality to tastefully show tragedy." Phys.org - News and Articles on Science and Technology. October 1, 2017. Accessed November 30, 2017. https://phys.org/news/2017-10-director-virtual-reality-tastefully-tragedy.html.