Young people of Peja learn about VR filmmaking in the 11th edition of Anibar

In the 11th edition of Animation Festival “Anibar”, some young people aged 16-24 years old, who wanted to learn more about VR filmmaking, had the chance to attend the masterclass “Intro to Filmmaking in VR “That’s Unreal!”. The masterclass was held by the tutors Mari Jaye Blanchard, independent animator and Assistant Professor of Animation at the Rochester Institute of Technology in the School of Film and Animation, and Mark Reisch, 3D animator.

The masterclass was four hours long, and it started with a 3D movie made previously by the tutors as an introduction to the class. The video could be moved around 360 degrees with the cursor, and the students could look at the video from all angles, which was very interesting to them.

The tutor Mari Jaye Blanchard first explained to the students the basics of VR animation, and shared with them that to film a VR space you need to place the assets either in 2D or 3D animation. Then, through the frames of the animation you can turn it into a VR film.

The students came up with the idea to animate a pineapple, which when sliced with a samurai sword, turns into a pizza. The tutor Blanchard encouraged the students to animate independently at the same time as she did.

The masterclass went on with other animations, which were made by the students in 2D with the help of the tutors. These animations were made in order for them to be transferred from 2D or 3D into VR.

Anibar was able to get some impressions from the participants, whom we asked about why they decided to join the masterclass, what were their thoughts on the class, and how the online format affected the whole learning process.

Two of the participants, Olti Topalli and Harea Zhitia, shared that they wanted to learn more about creating VR films because it is something new for them and it is appealing to them to learn from professionals. Zhitia, who last year participated in a workshop about VR, came back this year for the masterclass because she wanted to learn more in details about VR filmmaking.

Another participant, Natyra Shabi, shared with us her impressions of the masterclass, which she described as very interesting and informative. The instructions on how to turn 2D and 3D into VR is what she found most interesting. She said that it was a fun experience because she had the chance to learn something outside of school, which was appealing because in other ways perhaps she would not be quite willing to try.

When asked about the impact of the online format on the masterclass, she shared that it was a bit challenging, due to the flow of the learning process which took a bit more time, but shared that overall it was a very lively and enjoyable experience.