Immotion, the virtual reality entertainment specialist, has announced the release of a new live-action VR experience, Swimming with Humpbacks. The film gives viewers a rare glimpse into the whales’ underwater world, including a birth scene.
This new short film is available exclusively on Immotion’s VR Cinematic motion pods, at ImmotionVR stores. Viewers can enjoy an up close and personal story of a migrating pod of humpback whales, some of the most mysterious creatures under the sea. The company worked with a leading free-diving cinematographer to create the experience. Jeff Hester filmed the migrating whales in live action VR. He captured the footage in the Kingdom of Tonga, during the mating season, while the whales were on migration from Antarctica. A key part of the film is the recording of a female giving birth, and then bonding with her young calf. Other whales in the footage are seen playing and vying for female attention. Hester also captures an intense heat run, where the males chase the female in an ocean sprint.
The VR experience is the first instalment in the company’s planned Blue Ocean Aquarium series. It will soon be available through SonyVR and through mobile downloads on iOS and Android. This means viewers can enjoy the unique footage in the comfort of their own home.
A fully immersive underwater experience
Martin Higginson, CEO of Immotion Group, said: “At Immotion, we are always looking to push the boundaries of VR. What we’ve managed to capture is truly breath-taking. The film provides an incredible insight into these elusive creatures. The experience makes full use of the visual, sound and motion capabilities of our VR Cinematic motion pods to deliver our customers something ground-breaking and memorable. We are excited about future instalments of our Blue Ocean Aquarium series, and demonstrating the power of VR to engage and thrill audiences.”
Ian Liddell, Immotion’s Group Creative Director added, “This film is a first for VR. People can experience something they may have only dreamed about until now. Thanks to this piece of immersive filming, it’s possible for them to get up close with humpback whales. This is a truly remarkable achievement to get so near to such a magnificent and endangered species.”
Immotion recently announced the rollout of its VR simulators to Legoland Discovery Centres worldwide, in a significant milestone for the company.
