VR: On Body and Soul

Many VR filmmakers have been interested in virtual representation of the human body and soul. After overcoming the initial technological challenges, they are now in the process of exploring new ways of representation through various ethnics, animal species, entities or emotional states. One of the milestones of this development was the employment of hands. Instead of controllers, a viewer can now use a VR representation of his own hands. He can touch, hold or carry an object or make gestures.
One of the projects combining this feature with a psychological topic is, for example, the Czech film Darkening (2022). It takes us into the soul of a man suffering from depression. Viewers can manually control the story and they can also use their voice. Another example of combining the physical and psychical aspects in virtual reality is the Polish film Control Negative (2022) where a viewer, moving around the virtual space, feels frustrated and loses control over their own body. Plastisapiens (2022) works with movement and emotions in a specific way. Viewers turn into a plastic entity and are continuously encouraged by a narrator to accept their new physical form.
This year’s VR section is going to be full of intense and transformative experiences.

Programmers:

Ondřej Moravec is a programmer of our VR section and a VR filmmaker. Besides virtual reality, he also writes scripts for “flat” films with “flatless” content.