Virtual reality moviemaking is taking flight at this year’s Cannes Film Festival alongside traditional film offerings.
Moreover, a pavilion is dedicated to the immersive technology, with virtual reality film screenings and discussions as part of the festival’s tandem Marche du Film sessions.
Among those showing virtual reality films is Madagascar co-director Eric Darnell, whose six-minute Invasion! tells the story of a mythical world invaded by aliens then outsmarted by a rabbit.
Another virtual reality film showing in Cannes is Giant, whose director Milica Zec says the immersive experience means audiences can choose where they look and what they see.
Zec and Darnell agree the technology still has a long way to go but virtual reality films will one day become the norm.
However, not everyone is a fan. Director Steven Spielberg said such movies will “take hold in a profound way” but said it was “a dangerous medium”.
“The only reason I say it is dangerous is because it gives the viewer a lot of latitude not to take direction from the storytellers.”