Germany’s first walkable movie
The VR experience EIN GANZES LEBEN (“An Entire Lifetime”) follows an actress named Maria as she goes on a journey through the history of German film – from a silent film scene right up to the present day. The user experiences how illusions and technical tricks have always been used to enchant the viewer.
“How can a technical innovation like volumetric video yield narrative value -and inspire an audience?”
Three Sucess Factors
The combination of storytelling and the use of holograms in a virtual environment creates a new medium: the volumetric film. The aim of volumetric film is to make the viewer’s virtual reality even more immersive; to have him understand that he is in a room with real actors. The use of Human Body Reconstruction technology in combination with a narrative concept makes for a true world premiere.
Storytelling:
As in 360-degree video production, lighting accents and sound effects are set to grab the viewer’s attention(a technique simply known as “Attention Grabbing”) and guide him in the room. They were used sparingly so as to not disturb the illusion of free movement and to avoid stress for the user.
Actors:
By using well-known actors, the German viewer quickly realizes that the holograms are real people and not just artificial avatars („I know this guy from TV“). This further increases the user’s acceptance of the medium. In the VR experience, the cast consists of Franziska Brandmeier and German acting legend Herbert Knaup; they embody the style of the 1920s as a director and the actress Maria, who guides the user through the film.
Technology:
This process enables photo realistic reconstructions and is currently one of the best in the world.
Production :
A previously produced test case with Fraunhofer and UFA already generated the first learning experiences in the production process. These challenges were successfully overcome by combining the Fraunhofer Institute’s wealth of scientific experience and UFA’s
EIN GANZES LEBEN premiered as part of the“100 Years of UFA” exhibition at the Deutsche Kinemathek (Museum of Film and Television) in Berlin. Visitors were thus able to experience not only the pioneering work of the first German filmmakers in the exhibition, but also the VR experience.
Source: UFAX
