Experience the love and beauty of Paris in VR 180 with Vanilla Lily: A Masterpiece created with Mistika VR

Published On: March 8th, 2023

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Vanilla Lily is an enchanting VR 180 film that follows the journey of a young artist who unexpectedly encounters a charming financier in a Parisian park. The story evolves into a romantic journey between the two, captivating viewers with its immersive experience. Produced by The Metaverse Stage, the film is written and directed by Keeley Turner, acclaimed XR Filmmaker and Metaverse Creator and post-produced in Mistika VR by Hugh Hou, a renowned Metaverse Filmmaker.

To create a truly innovative VR project, Director Keeley Turner sought to capture the essence of Parisian culture and her own love for the city by filming Vanilla Lily entirely in French and subtitled in English to broaden its appeal to international audiences. The film boasts some of the highest specifications for VR video, being one of the first VR 180 short films on YouTube and Meta Quest TV to be shot in 8K 60fps RAW using the Canon EOS R5C and the Canon RF 5.2mm f/2.8 L Dual Fisheye lens.

Navigating new ways of immersive storytelling

The creatives were determined to break the mould of traditional storytelling, so they implemented innovative ways to bring their vision to life. As the Director, I boldly blended French New Wave cinematic techniques into Virtual Reality, taking advantage of a brand-new medium to deliver a unique and unconventional story, shared Keeley. To achieve this goal, they combined cutting-edge techniques and tools, with Hugh's expertise as a brilliant VR cinematographer, perfectly capturing Keeley's creative vision. Together, they crafted a truly immersive experience that transports viewers to the heart of Paris, blending tradition and innovation to deliver a one-of-a-kind story.

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In post-production, Keeley and Hugh turned to Mistika VR for its powerful stitching capabilities. Specifically, they made use of the VR Headset preview, including Mistika VR Connect for Oculus 2, allowing them to adjust stitch lines and depth in real-time without the need for rendering. With the ability to preview and modify the depth independently of the camera's real-world position, they had greater creative freedom to tell their story in a unique and distinctive way.

Finding a balance between art and technology

Art plays a central role in Vanilla Lily, reflecting Keeley's desire to offer viewers a whimsical look into the world of Baroque and Rococo styles of painting, as seen through the eyes of the film's protagonist, Lily.

We aimed to create a second layer of information for the audience, exploring the art history of the period using 3D graphics that blend seamlessly with the 180 frames, explained Keeley.

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Vanilla Lily offers a truly immersive experience, as the larger 180 frame enables viewers to become fully immersed in the art and culture of Paris, while Lily breaks the fourth wall by speaking directly to the audience. This subtle but engaging interaction with the viewer offers a unique blend of entertainment and education, providing a passive experience that feels incredibly active.

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Enhancing viewer engagement and control in VR 180

While the primary objective of VR 360 or 180 content is to give viewers a sense of place, Keeley and Hugh wanted to take this experience to a whole new level by offering the audience the freedom to choose their own focus within the immersive environment

We didn't want the audience to just be passive observers of the story, but rather active participants who could explore the world around them and interact with the film, explained Keeley. To achieve this goal, they filled the environment with exquisite paintings inspired by Lily's art history monolog, motivating viewers to once again look around and engage with the story.

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Incorporating the overlapping elements into the scenes was no easy task, but Mistika VR proved to be an invaluable tool for achieving precise control in post-production.

It was crucial that the overlap elements fit seamlessly within the 3D space of the scene without causing any stereo conflicts that could make viewers feel sick in VR, said Hugh. To achieve this, we used Mistika VR to control the depth of the scene, a challenging task that required a delicate touch. Fortunately, Mistika VR's headset preview allowed them to fine-tune the effect to perfection and ens

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