Travel Videos, Cartoons, Documentaries and More Turn to VR

Results from a new survey show that 41 percent of the adult population of the U.S. have either already tried a virtual reality headset or are interested in doing so. Not surprisingly, the majority of those in that 41 percent fall into the young (18–24 year old) demographic and the majority are male. That’s most likely because VR experiences, up until now at least, have mainly focused on gaming. But the new Kaleidoscope VR Film Festival is highlighting a wide range of content that most likely will interest a broader audience. Continue reading Travel Videos, Cartoons, Documentaries and More Turn to VR

VR Reigns in New Frontier Category at Sundance Film Festival

In the Sundance Film Festival’s New Frontier exhibition, virtual reality is making a strong showing with 11 VR installations at this year’s festival. The projects range from a high-flying experience through the skies of San Francisco to a first-person perspective of a college assault as well as a number of compelling examples regarding how news gathering and documentary storytelling is evolving. The technology is advancing so rapidly that creators already have new ideas about how to produce the content. Continue reading VR Reigns in New Frontier Category at Sundance Film Festival

Startup Introduces System to Predict Box Office Performance

Japanese startup Crunchers unveiled a system at Tokyo International Film Festival’s content market that will help forecast how a movie will perform in theaters. The system uses big data to determine the success of a movie based on marketing and promotional efforts, word-of-mouth or the “viral effect,” and the timing of the release, and it will only continue to improve its accuracy as it gets more data. Crunchers’ system launches in Japan in November with the U.S. release expected by early 2015. Continue reading Startup Introduces System to Predict Box Office Performance

Crowdsourcing: FilmFunds Wants You to Greenlight Film and TV Projects

  • FilmFunds, a new venture launching this week at the Toronto International Film Festival, will use a crowdsourcing approach to help determine whether a film or TV show would draw an audience.
  • FilmFunds’ test group of some 60 million moviegoers will review synopses, trailers, artwork and other marketing materials and vote whether to “Like” a project. The results can help put a project into production and get it completed, distributed and marketed.
  • According to Variety: “Site divides projects into three categories — materials of projects members can help put into production, completed projects member votes can help get finished or distributed, and a marketing portal where studio pics can gain support and members can recruit friends and pre-sell tickets through websites like Fandango.”
  • A FilmFunds mobile app provides more information after a user takes a snapshot of a poster, trailer or film title.
  • The article also references Emotional ID, which “translates real-time facial reactions and emotions during test previews into measurable results.”
  • The FilmFunds site allows users to enter as a Filmmaker (“Get your projects seen and potentially produced”) or a Fan (“Promote projects and interact with filmmakers”).
  • According to the site: “FilmFunds enables you to choose what you want to see and then we get it made. Our connections in the industry finalize deals but your vote is the catalyst. The more you participate the bigger the rewards. A few ‘suits’ used to call all the shots. FilmFunds puts YOU in charge. We’re just here to help!”