The 75th Venice International Film Festival is soon to take place featuring plenty of glitz and glamour as the worlds film stars descend on the city for just over a week of cinematic screenings. As seems to be common place nowadays no film festival would be complete without a 360-degree or virtual reality (VR) film somewhere in the mix and Venice is no exception. Debuting at the event will be Oculus VR for Good Creators Lab project Home After War: Returning to Fear in Fallujah and the first and final installment of space exploration series SPHERES.
SPHERES made its original debut earlier this year showcasing episode 2 “Songs of Spacetime” at the Sundance Film Festival followed by Episode 3: “Pale Blue Dot” at the Tribeca Film Festival. During the Sundance Film Festival Kaleidoscope revealed the series had secured a seven-figure deal, although the exact amount was never divulged.
Not only will Venice Film Festival attendees be able to see SPHERES Episode 1 “Chorus of the Cosmos” for the first time but also the other episodes as well. Executive produced by Darren Aronofsky, Ari Handel, and René Pinnell, produced by Jess Engel, Arnaud Colinart, and Dylan Golden, and directed by Eliza McNitt, SPHERES stars Jessica Chastain as the narrator.
“SPHERES is inspired by the idea that space is not silent—in fact, it’s actually full of sound,” said McNitt. “We’ve spent thousands of years studying the cosmos and trying to understand our place in the universe, but for the first time we’re listening to its music.”
Home After War: Returning to Fear in Fallujah follows the real-life story of an Iraqi family’s return to Fallujah after being displaced from their home by war. Directed by Gayatri Parameswaran from NowHere Media in partnership with the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD), viewers hear the story of Ahmaied as they are transported through his home learning about the ever-present threat posed by IEDs that litter the area.
The Venice International Film Festival has plenty more VR films on display if you happen to be heading to the city. If any more are added, VRFocus will keep you updated.