The unique perspective of VR

The experience of watching a VR film is truly immersive – and unique. Understanding this is crucial when considering post-viewing engagement and feedback…

No two views of an identical VR film will ever be the same. For some people, that is truly amazing. But for film producers who want to evaluate effectiveness? Not so good. In 2-D film, it is really easy to direct viewers to see what you want them to see. There is only one perspective. VR is completely different. A participant puts the headset on and becomes immersed in the virtual reality. If it is the first time they have ever experienced this, it is likely you will see them spend the first 30 seconds looking up, down, over their shoulder and all around, amazed by the immersive nature of the technology.

With so many things to look at in a VR film, it can be really difficult for a participant to know whether they are looking in the right direction or at the right thing. As VR film producers, the key to creating an effective VR film, is all in the storytelling. The story must direct the viewer and steer them to the action. This gives us the greatest chance of making the viewer see what we want them to see.

As everyone has a unique viewing experience, it follows that everyone will react differently to the film as well. Post-viewing engagement can be really interesting because you often hear two participants who watched exactly the same VR film at exactly the same time, speak of seeing very different things and saying, “I missed that!” or “Did you see that bit!” This can encourage participants to want to view the film again, perhaps at home on their phone or using cardboard goggles, which serves the reinforce the messages once again.

When collating feedback or running a group discussion after the group has viewed the film, it is important not to be too rigid with the questions. Whilst closed questioning can be useful for gathering statistical and easily comparable data, acknowledging that everyone has a unique viewing experience is critical. Offering open questions will stop the participant feeling confused if they have not seen a particular aspect of the film. A group discussion also provokes peer-to-peer conversation about the things they saw, the things they may have missed, how it made them feel and what action they will take in the future as a result of viewing the film.