The tuyere changes every day. VR, the darling of capital at the end of 2015, seems to have gradually faded after the winter. No one denies that it is still the future. But those impressions in the previous VR bubble: low-level VR devices, inflexible VR content, unclear business models, and frenzied capital operations have made many people skeptical of VR. However, new opportunities are emerging during this cold winter. After the hot money left, VR did not stop developing as many people thought, but instead entered a phase of low-key development. Taking VR film and TV in VR content as an example, we improved the shooting equipment, explored new narrative techniques, gradually increased the length and complexity, improved the packaging and distribution methods, and even fostered film and television production teams that knew VR technology. Similar to these improvements, we are silent The progress will accumulate power for the next wave of VR. Jaunt is a world-leading VR industry leader in hardware, software, tools, application development and content production. It was in the “Winter of VR†that Jaunt began its series of layouts in China. Last month, Jaunt and the Digital Media Academy of Beijing Film Academy announced the establishment of a joint VR film and television laboratory. The day before yesterday, JauntVR's Chinese version landed at the Xiaomi Store, bringing a VR masterpiece including "Fifty Shades of Black" VR Edition. What opportunities did Jaunt see in this cold winter? What are the current changes in VR film and television? We talked to Jaunt China CEO Fang Hao. 36kr: Last month, Jaunt China announced that it would collaborate with the Beijing Film Academy to establish a VR lab. Can you chat first? Why did you make such a decision? Fang Hao: I think it is very simple, it is talent. VR now has an important bottleneck that is lack of talent. From a creative point of view or from a production point of view, working with the best film schools to develop students is a very good model. Then it was just good that Bei Ying was also setting up a college for new media. At that time, I just had a chat with Kevin (Professor of the School of Digital Media at Beijing Film Academy, former director of Disney's 3D production Kevin Geiger). I thought that I would like to introduce VR. North Shadow also wants to be a new media, and then talk about it. very natural. 36kr: But VR is very different from traditional movies. Can film schools teach good VR shooters? Or, who is going to teach when the current VR basic shooting style and lens language are not clear? how to teach? Fang Hao: This is a very good question. This is not just a matter of thinking about where we are. Everyone is pondering this matter. Therefore, we will jointly develop teaching with the Digital Media Academy of Beijing Film Academy. Personally, I think that in the future, VR content creation should not only understand movies but also games. You must understand video transmission and understand technology. These technologies include not only movies but also many other technologies. In addition, there may be stage knowledge. In the course, we will translate a foreign PDF, which has many lessons learned by VR creators. But this is not a fixed textbook. VR is very flexible and cannot be rigidly studied, because you are likely to learn today and tomorrow. So we emphasize that we must learn on our own. And we also hope that students’ explorations can be summed up on our platform in a timely manner and that content is constantly updated. Another advantage of cooperating with the school is that it can stimulate students to communicate with VR creators who have a certain professional foundation. We have held several sharing events for VR creators before. This time at Nortel, our courses are both students of Nortel and creators of VR. It makes sense for them to communicate with each other. Because students can bring a lot of new thinking, and VR experts can give students a lot of experience, I think it is a good combination. All of this training in VR is a newly developed course. It has a lot of uncertainty, but on the other hand, this market is still a blank paper, there is no leader, and therefore is also a good opportunity to enter this market. 36kr: Are those practitioners of traditional film and television origin participating in this course? What do they think about these differences between VR and film production? Fang Hao: Yes, they feel very different. For example, if you look at a scene, you have to write a screenwriter. How do you write your drama now? In a very free range of activities, how do you write this play, which needs to be explored? Not to mention the director, and now where the director is, it is completely different from the previous one. The same is true of actors. In the past there was a camera that followed him. There were lights and sets. But now our actors may also need training. If you are an actress in a film and television show, your performance is facing the camera, where the camera plays. But in front of VR, your lens is full-body, it is more suitable for drama. This means that the actors who come out of the drama class may be more suitable for VR. Because he does not have a concept of a shot, he is performing his role all over the body. We have a good example. Just a few months ago, a friend of mine was making VR and he was looking for an actor. In foreign countries, it is not natural for a film actor to shoot. My friend said that it was okay. You should relax a bit. He took a movie camera and placed it there. He walked with him. It was natural that his movie equipment was in front of him. Then he said OK, do you feel it? felt it. Take it away, and then it's natural to shoot again. Some actor he is used to see this lens, there is a photographer behind the lens, the photographer is sitting next to the director, or director assistant, he is very suitable for this scene. But these are all VR scenes. Therefore, it may be more natural to play a drama on the stage because he plays face-to-face with the audience. He did not have a director, nor did he have a device in front of him to follow him. He spoke to the audience. So in this respect, from a certain perspective, if you have a certain drama background and played a movie, I think it is very suitable for VR. Similarly, in VR, the concept of the photographer has also completely changed. Jaunt launches VR professional photography equipment Jaunt one 36kr: In the past, Jaunt most people may have had the impression of a device, such as Jaunt One. Then related to Jaunt One, they may train the photographer. Then the photographer follows the device and then rents it to the VR team. But now, there is an overall training for directors, cameramen, screenwriters, and even actors. Why do you do this? Fang Hao: We just provide a camera device. It's just an illusion. Indeed in the United States, equipment rental services can only provide equipment plus some photographers. But who do they work for? For whom? Still working for the director? They are serving this idea. I personally feel that if it is VR, from a certain perspective, it is the same as a movie. Before making a movie, the director and the photographer need to work closely together and collaborate to plan where the camera should be placed in the camera, what angles to shoot, and what to shoot. When shooting VR, especially in China, the role of the photographer is very important. why? Because the director may not be familiar with the VR device, he needs the photographer to provide him with more opinions, including how to realize the idea. They must do very close cooperation to complete. VR shooting is actually very different from traditional shooting. It contains many new ideas and questions. For example, where is the camera placed, how to shoot light? You can't just put the light device around and let it enter the scene. When shooting in VR, the light may be hidden under the table, hiding it in places that the lens can't see, or even using lights. For another example, at dusk, the light is not particularly bright. What should I do at this time? There are many different ways to make a movie. The light is very gentle and especially good, but how does VR adjust the light? These are new topics. Dubbing is not the same as before, now the camera is recording the sound of a 360-degree panorama. When the audience listens, he has a concept of space. There is no such concept in filming. So in terms of VR, there is a great demand for sound professionalism. Last is the clip, how to cut VR? Therefore, in this aspect, each paragraph is new, and it is necessary for the director and different teams to grind it out and develop it. Although we are doing these training activities in the name of Jaunt One from the business model point of view, we also hope that this inspiration point will inspire more creatives, directors, screenwriters, and various artists to cultivate the ecological environment. stand up. The main purpose is to increase the level of VR content production in China. 36kr: After you come to Jaunt China, you should contact many Chinese VR creatives, especially the directors. How do you feel about them? Where are they better? Or say a higher level? Where else might it be better? Fang Hao: I think the words of the director, whether China or the United States are very ideal, they hope to bring the best ideas out to the audience to appreciate, this is quite the same. However, in the face of new technologies and new media, how to create this story. The United States and China must have different places. For many American audiences, they mainly look at themselves, and China’s words may interact and have more elements of the game. 36kr: This is exactly the opposite of what I think. Fang Hao: Is it the other way? 36kr: I think the American audience will prefer to interact more. China prefers to watch. Fang Hao: I think it is the other way around. Why is it reversed? Because there is a lot of data, everyone is not particularly confident with the data. But I feel this is the situation. You have to look at the U.S. offline experience shop market. There is no experience. They do not have any experience. 36kr: There is no offline experience store in the United States? Fang Hao: Not much. The largest offline experience store in the United States is opened in Los Angeles, unlike China. You see a lot of experience halls or experience centers under the VR line, everywhere. So, the first step that Americans make when they come into contact with VR is that they are likely to see it for the first time. They are wearing a very simple Cardboard. 36kr: This experience is very bad. Fang Fang: Yes, so most Americans aren’t interacting, they are watching, and the experience is not particularly good. It's not that you have arrived in New York and can be found anywhere in the city (VR experience room). In Beijing, you can easily find a VR experience room and experience hall. So for the experiencer on the Chinese side, the first contact may be an interactive system. He is not looking at it, but is interacting. Second, which people are attracted to the interaction? The main reason is that there are more people playing games, so if you play in this area, you will have a lot of games to play. So when it comes to contact with Chinese directors, they really want to not only tell the story, but also from an interactive point of view, how to get closer to the audience. Some of the directors in the United States wanted to find out more about how to describe the experience in the way of movies or storytelling. This is at least the difference between China and the United States that I now observe. It may change later, but at least I personally observe this. 36kr: From the technique of storytelling, and from the tendency of telling stories, is there any difference between a Chinese director and a foreign director? Fang Hao: I think that in this part of storytelling, both China and the United States have. The great difference between China and the United States lies in the fact that the U.S. funds are a bit more, and the content seems to be more upscale, that is, a bit more special effects. But you don't say that he really tells stories. There are but there are not many. But the quality is definitely higher than China. Why is it high? Because they are willing to spend money. It is mainly two or three roles that are spending money. One is a platform. Like Google and Facebook, they will spend money to customize. They will invite some famous directors to think about VR. These platforms are willing to invest in content, so their quality is high. why? Because someone pays, this is one. Second, the United States has a lot of VR. Its quality is not very good, and it belongs to the big IP. Why? Because it is equal to the movie's trailer. After a large film release, the marketing budget has a global promotion fee of almost $100 million. If you only need to spend less than a million to do VR video, they are definitely willing to do it. So in this regard, from the perspective of movie promotion costs, it is entirely possible to dial a part and do it in VR. China does not have this situation. China's movie promotion fees are not so high and relatively low. If I am a movie promoter, more than 80% of my users are learning and buying online channels. I may have spent more than one million on the movie platform, because that is directly related to your purchase. In the United States, it is not the same. AOL buys only 15% of the votes, but China is as high as 90%. So you can see that most foreigners are willing to make movie VR trailers. China has not yet reached the point where it is investing in large-scale IP, because its forecast fees are relatively high and the quality of production is even higher. Another is advertising. The United States now recognizes the sponsorship of VR advertising. They have already begun to form this idea. In the automotive industry, or some of the more high-end luxury goods, they have already begun to put into the VR side, so this business model runs faster than China. From these fronts, China is still a bit behind. However, we are optimistic about China's VR outlook. The first V is related to mobile phones. The world's largest mobile phone market is in China, so the largest market for VR should be in China. Another, VR has a close relationship with the game, the world's largest game market is also in China. Thirdly, the world’s second largest movie market is also here, so the future of VR is definitely in China. When the VR market starts to run, these ads will keep up. There is no doubt about this. VR Arden's Wake by VR Animation Studio Penrose in San Francisco 36kr: The cold winter last year was a challenge to VR to a large extent. Although we look at the good side, it allows some hot money to leave, but on the other hand, in the current situation, how to persuade investors to come Invest in VR film and TV. What do you think is the point worth investing in VR film and television? Fang Hao: If I need to communicate with investors, my purpose is not to convince them but to cooperate with investors. I will seek cooperation from equally passionate investors. Because if you think that the film you shoot this year must make money, I think it may be a bit difficult, because I think the market is not that big. Now is the time to grind this and explore technology. Talents are being cultivated. Why do you want to do this one? Because I am convinced that by next year and the next year, the market will certainly heat up. At that time, you started to prepare. At that time, you can only think about making money. You are just investing and learning. You are planting seeds now. It is impossible to say that eating today will eat tomorrow. It is not that easy. 36kr: Not to mention VR content still needs a production time. Fang Hao: Yes. You see, the VR production cycle is very fast now because most of the average VR content is 5 minutes. Now it becomes 20 minutes and 30 minutes. Your production time will certainly grow longer because the more you do, the more things you need to think and the more complex. Second, you are likely to increase interactive content, there will be a lot of different technical aspects of the implantation and special effects, which will increase your production time. Everyone is wondering about this stuff, but it doesn't know how much time it takes. But I personally feel deeply that VR content must be different from ordinary movies, videos, and games. People will only look at it. Otherwise, people put a 71-inch TV and audio equipment inside your home. You see it well. Why should you go to VR? So if you don't have a way to break this point, people will never look at VR. Or if people think that this experience is normal, they will not see it again. So if you want to do something, it must take a lot of effort to do this thing better than what you are now experiencing. It is better than playing games now and better than watching movies and TV. Only in this way can the audience be attracted to this experience. For example, there is an animation made by my friend named “Arden's Wakeâ€. It is not yet open to the public, but there are already some trailers on the Internet. This is an absolute boutique, every detail is very beautiful from a visual point of view. From the point of view of sound, sound and music, it is a beautiful film. Even if I turn it into an animated movie or short film, I think it has a lot of appeal. It also incorporated VR technology very well. He used a concept called Six degree of freedom, that is, six degrees of freedom to experience it. So when you wear this helmet, you can go inside the VR and you can go to the sea. You can see a house. You can put your head on the window and see what happens inside the house. You can pick up your feet, see the second floor, see the first floor, and look at the film from many different angles. At the same time, this story has been developing. No matter how you look at it, this story is still going, but you can experience this story in a very free environment. 36kr: In addition to the content quality, what other good looking recovery trends exist in the VR industry? Fang Hao: I think the good trend from the hardware point of view is that everyone is starting to innovate. For mobile phones, there is Google Daydream. Its screen is now a 4K screen, and then there is a handle, which will greatly improve the VR experience on the phone. Now that it is difficult for you to control your choices, it is difficult to choose things. It is difficult for you to use your eyesight and it is almost impossible to operate. So if you build a handle, you can choose something. You know how to do things. This is a big change I think, the standards of the screen and the standard of the handle, you can see Huawei, Xiaomi they now have a handle. So the next step of VR is to have a relationship with the handle, and it is a good point of inspiration. On PCs and mobile phones, I think there will be great hardware breakthroughs. However, these were announced last year and this year, so it will take almost a year or a year and a half to really enter the market sooner or later. However, it is a great advantage for the Chinese market. China now has more than 690 million mobile phones, and China's annual mobile phone exchange rate is 50% to 70%. So if there are 10 million units this year, by the end of next year, it will There are 100 million such Google phones, and for almost 18 months from now, I am not surprised. If you have this 4K screen including the handle, your market can burst out. Because of this handle, you can play games. With games, you have a market. Advances in equipment may also drive changes in business models. For example, in the case of advertising, helmets are used today, and many users simply do not want to buy them because they are inconvenient. But Google’s Daydream came out with a handle. This is the first step. With the handle, you can press a lot of keys to jump to another site. However, it is impossible and inconvenient. I want to see the products I want. I have one point, and then this information is sent to my Wechat. It may be purchased on WeChat. This is the basic first step. Then with development, you can start monitoring. When I understand where the audience's attention is, I can enumerate it and make a hotspot map. In the ad, I see 80% of them look at the lower left corner. Because there is this color in the lower left corner, this car, I Know how to design this section. At present, these monitoring data in the VR environment have not yet been collected for a period of time. Accumulation can be more effective for advertising. 36kr: Generally speaking, for the part of VR content quality and distribution, everyone will think that the platform side will pay more attention to this issue, or investors will pay more attention to it. Why does Jaunt and even Jaunt China cut it from the shooting equipment? Industry chain? What will happen this year? Fang Hao: We look at the history of the film. If we look back at the history of 100 years of film, we also started to make movies and also engage in production, distribution, and promotion. Why? Because if you want to make good content, he must control every link, because each one is new. So, we want to understand the details of this industrial process in more detail, and then we know how to control and influence each part of it, how to improve the audience experience, make better things out, and ultimately drive our business. mode. Therefore, we must first use the best shooting equipment to make these images; then use the best cloud, cut it, make it, package it; and use the best distribution method to release it to every platform. Finally, from the promotion point of view, whether you are in the United States or China, the audience can get the same content and then receive the same information. Saying this, we think that Jaunt is more like a re-establishment of a movie studio. So, Jaunt China now has several directions in its layout. The first is that in photography equipment and even in the photography industry, we can achieve breakthroughs in certain areas. For example, Jaunt One, whether it is leasing or selling, or how it works, finds a unique way in China. After all, the Chinese market is not the same as the US market. Then in this part of the cloud, how do you get this set of cloud algorithms from the United States to China? Because the Chinese cloud uses services in the Amazon cloud, Amazon in China is not the same as the United States because it is specifically designed to serve China alone. Therefore, it is difficult for us to introduce the US algorithm. We have been debugging in this area. However, after this success, the Chinese VR team can achieve real synchronization with the world. Later, whether China or abroad, as long as foreign authors agree to use us as national distributors, he will directly push those contents to China, and I will help him directly. Conversely, the same is true. In China's content, he allowed me to give distribution rights to me. I can immediately push it abroad, so that he can avoid trying to find a foreign publisher or put his own content in a different APP abroad. Or go to facebook, our platform can help him automatically switch to a different platform. We will have a lot of moves this month. Everyone can pay attention.