At Cannes Film Festival over the weekend, acclaimed director Randal Kleiser (“Grease”) and producer Tanna Frederick of Feral Dog Productions premiered “DEFROST,” (episode 2, season 1) a 12-episode narrative virtual series filmed with OZO. “DEFROST” was shown as a curated exposition of VR as part of Furious M’s session, “The Future of VR, a U.S. Perspective,” at the NEXT Pavilion of the Marché du Film.
Filmed using Nokia’s professional-grade VR camera, OZO, “DEFROST” takes place in the year 2045, when liquid nitrogen is now commonly used to freeze patients until remedies for their illnesses are developed. Starring Carl Weathers, Bruce Davison and Tanna Frederick, the series was filmed in360, allowing audience members to witness the story directly from the perspective of the main character who wakes up from a frozen state after 30 years.
As a series of 12 episodes, “DEFROST” is an exciting use case for OZO, demonstrating how virtual reality can be used effectively in longer-form narrative to put audiences at the heart of the story. “DEFROST” capitalizes on the immersive, intimate and empathetic experiences that can be created with OZO, and provides a picture of the kind of entertainment that VR can deliver.
Attendees take part in virtual experiences as part of Furious M’s session at the NEXT Pavilion of the Marché du Film at Cannes.Panelists discuss the future of VR at the NEXT Pavilion of the Marché du Film at Cannes.
Kleiser, director and producer of such hits as “Grease,” “The Blue Lagoon,” and “Flight of the Navigator,” had this to say about his VR experience with OZO:
“Nokia has been very supportive of our VR series ‘DEFROST.’ With the OZO camera, we were able to see in the headset what we were shooting live. Instant playback was another big plus after our previous experience of pulling cards and downloading to see what we were doing. We hope to continue our association with the Nokia team.”
Cannes attendees were able to watch “DEFROST” via 30 VR head-mounted displays distributed to the audience, allowing them to witness the screening fully immersed in the shared VR experience.
“DEFROST” was produced by Tanna Frederick, Feral Dog Productions, in association with Furious M, a California-based startup VR studio specializing in VR content and exhibition.