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Making High-Concept 360° Video

By | Technology | No Comments

The learning curve has been sharp, but we’re getting a better grasp of 360 video creation every day. First, let’s recap: We began our efforts in 360 video from scratch. Initial challenges:  What gear do you use? How do you stitch the videos together? WHY WON’T THESE VIDEOS LINE UP? (If you’ve tried your hand at stitching, you know what I’m talking about). We began with the 6 camera 360Hero setup. It worked. Both the Beach Day Video and El Matador Cliffs video were shot using six GoPros. However, there were what we call “glitches in the matrix.” More cameras = more coverage, we decide. We up our game and settle on the 10-camera 360Hero setup for shooting and Kolor’s AutoPano programs for editing. Our latest video, Dreaming Downtown, uses this 10 camera set up. We also up the production value on this video. Like most experimenting with 360 video, the beach videos allow you to…

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Immersive Experience vs. Screen Watching

By | Storytelling | No Comments

I love movies, and probably watch 3-4 per week via the usual portals: Netflix, Hulu, VUDU, and Amazon Prime. Don’t even get me started on the TV shows. I don’t anticipate that immersive VR experiences will ever change the appeal of watching a movie play out in front of me, especially since I can watch while also doing work on my computer.  Much of the work I do involves tedious laptop editing, etc., and having something playing on the TV is pretty much the go-to for getting it done. But obviously, we over the Playhouse have fallen head over heels for VR. So let’s not say that VR and Oculus are going to make movies obsolete (we still listen to radio, right?), but what you get from the VR experience is different and deeply satisfying. The first thing I feel inside the Oculus is privacy.  I feel like I’m in my own little…

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Virtual Reality | The Dawn of a New Story Telling Era

By | Storytelling | No Comments

“We should film people trying the Oculus Rift for the first time,” Ian says to me. It’s the same every time. Friend sits on couch, puts the Oculus Rift on his or her face, and below the ski goggle mask, a big smile emerges. Nobody puts on the Rift and isn’t totally blown away. I’m taking my friend Reyna through the developer’s kit demo, an animated virtual reality world of a small Tuscan villa. You start the demo inside the house, where you can look up at the vaulted, beamed ceiling, or down at the hard wood floor, at the staircase behind you, or out the window. By pushing the arrow keys on the computer, you can move out the door to a beautiful courtyard, where you realize you are on what appears to be an island. “You want to fly?” I ask her. A resounding yes. I push the =/+ sign on the…

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