Despite years of experimenting with different filmmaking techniques, Steven Soderbergh doesn’t believe virtual reality (VR) is suitable for long-form narrative. This probably means Lucky Logan 2 won’t be in VR.
In an interview with IGN, we asked Soderbergh — who has previously filmed entire movies on iPhones — whether he is interested in VR for potential future projects. But the director was flat in his refusal.
“No, I don’t think VR has long-form narrative applications. I just don’t,” Soderbergh says. “There’s some huge technical obstacles that preclude the use of some critical tools for a filmmaker. That combined with having that thing on your head for two hours, that combined with the inability while you’re watching something with somebody to have them be a part of your experience.”
While Soderbergh says that the social moment of being able to react to a movie together with others is a big negative against VR, he also mentions an even bigger issue.
“The inability to show the face of the protagonist in a VR space,” Soderbergh says. “There’s no POV and reverse angle on a character who’s experiencing this is hugely limiting. That is how we engage with visual stories, is to watch the expressions of the characters so that we can read the emotions of what we’re experiencing.”
In the same vein, Soderbergh has ruled out working in games but only because the director admits he doesn’t have a lot of gaming experience. And it’s why he believes VR experiences are “in my mind really built for gaming.”
Just because Soderbergh doesn’t believe in VR movies doesn’t mean others haven’t tried. Several studios working on exactly that including Baobab Studios. And the VR game Medal of Honor: Above and Beyond actually included a documentary titled Colette that won Best Documentary (Short Subject) at the 2021 Academy Awards.
IGN has a full interview with Soderberg where we talk to him about his upcoming thriller Kimi set in COVID-19 pandemic Seattle. The director also weighed in on the state of theaters given the ongoing pandemic.
Matt T.M. Kim is IGN's News Editor. You can reach him @lawoftd.
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In an interview with IGN, we asked Soderbergh — who has previously filmed entire movies on iPhones — whether he is interested in VR for potential future projects. But the director was flat in his refusal.
“No, I don’t think VR has long-form narrative applications. I just don’t,” Soderbergh says. “There’s some huge technical obstacles that preclude the use of some critical tools for a filmmaker. That combined with having that thing on your head for two hours, that combined with the inability while you’re watching something with somebody to have them be a part of your experience.”
While Soderbergh says that the social moment of being able to react to a movie together with others is a big negative against VR, he also mentions an even bigger issue.
“The inability to show the face of the protagonist in a VR space,” Soderbergh says. “There’s no POV and reverse angle on a character who’s experiencing this is hugely limiting. That is how we engage with visual stories, is to watch the expressions of the characters so that we can read the emotions of what we’re experiencing.”
In the same vein, Soderbergh has ruled out working in games but only because the director admits he doesn’t have a lot of gaming experience. And it’s why he believes VR experiences are “in my mind really built for gaming.”
Just because Soderbergh doesn’t believe in VR movies doesn’t mean others haven’t tried. Several studios working on exactly that including Baobab Studios. And the VR game Medal of Honor: Above and Beyond actually included a documentary titled Colette that won Best Documentary (Short Subject) at the 2021 Academy Awards.
IGN has a full interview with Soderberg where we talk to him about his upcoming thriller Kimi set in COVID-19 pandemic Seattle. The director also weighed in on the state of theaters given the ongoing pandemic.
Matt T.M. Kim is IGN's News Editor. You can reach him @lawoftd.
Continue reading...