2 years ago we have been working on a #VR app called "The Interview", by filmmaker Thom M. Vander Beken, co-produced by
@acyranek from hug_films.
And last week we won the #XR competion at
@kurzsuechtig.de festival!
"The Interview" is a VR experience that puts you in the role of a caseworker in an immigration office, having your first day at your new job.
After an instructor guides you through your tasks you will interview 4 different asylum seekers from Afghanistan. But only about 50% percent of asylum seekers are allowed to enter the European Union.
So you can only let 2 of the applicants in. How does it feel to deny asylum when the person is sitting right in front of you?
We used our own technique of rendering stereoscopic panoramas of the virtual office room in
@blender.official and blending that with stereoscopic greenscreen footage of the interviews with the actual asylum seekers, who were kind enough to be part of this project and share their own stories. Combined with both realtime and pre-rendered elements and the spatial sounds by Florian Marquardt the interviews are a captivating and immersive experience of the daily tragedies and struggles inside these immigration offices at European borders.
Thanks to everyone involved!
With Fatima Adib, Najib Faizi
@najibfaizi.official , Masoud Qahar, Masih Tajzai
@masih_tajzai , Farhud Hamidi and Myra Eetgerink
@myraeetgerink
Written & directed by Thom M. Vander Beken
Produced by Minds Meet: Tomas Leyers
Associated producer: Thom Vander Beken
Co-produced by hug films: Alina Cyranek & Falk Schuster
Line Producer: Alina Cyranek
App Programming: blendFX
App Development, Programming: Simeon Conzendorf
@simmisimmiyeah
Cinematography, Compositing, 3D Modeling: Falk Johnke
@falk_johnke
3D Modeling, Shading, Render Pipeline: Sebastian König
@sebastiankoenich
Sound Recording: Christoph Fleischer
Sound Design & Re-recording: Florian Marquardt
Graphics: Falk Schuster
Translations: Negina Wahidi
Funded by the Vlaams Audiovisueel Fonds & MDM Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung
@mdmedienfoerderung
Supported by East Doc Interactive 2019 organized by the Institute of Documentary Film and selected for IDFA Doclab Academy