Blade himself makes his virtual reality debut in an action-packed sci-fi experience.
It’s been awhile since we’ve heard from Wesley Snipes. We haven’t seen the iconic actor in quite some time, which has left many people, myself included, craving a Wesley Snipes comeback. Well it appears as though our prayers for an ass-kicking, gun-blazing return have finally been answered with the upcoming feature film The Recall 2017. We’ll also get to see the man himself make his virtual reality debut in the VR transmedia experience THE RECALL VR ABDUCTION.
Starring Mr. Snipes and R.J. Mitte (Breaking Bad’s Walt Jr.), The Recall 2017 is a sci-fi horror flick following a group of friends as they begin getting abducted while away at a cabin for the weekend. That is until Wesley Snipes comes in to save the day with a whole lot of scowling and a whole lot of big guns. However the really interesting part of this film is actually the virtual reality short film that will accompany the feature film, THE RECALL VR ABDUCTION.
In the 10 minute standalone short, user’s experience the action in first person by taking on the roll of the films star, Brendan, as he and his buddies first encounter the mysterious alien-killer played by Snipes. The experience is expected to release prior to the actual movie, but with multiple endings that differ drastically from that of the full film the short remains a unique experience separate from the feature. 360-degree videos featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the films production will be distributed via the film’s various social media accounts as well.
Snipes was reportedly thrilled to work in the exciting new medium for the first time. “The cool thing is that for theater actors, or thespians, this is a great format, because shooting in VR is similar to shooting a play, or performing a play,” Snipes elaborated. “You don’t have the luxury of cuts, and short takes, and do overs. You have to be on your game, and since everything is in the shot, everyone else needs to be on their game at the same time.”
Based off the trailer, THE RECALL 2017, it seems to be your standard cabin slasher flick i.e. a whole bunch of jump scares and a lot of teenagers making terrible decisions. However the recent trend of using VR short experiences to help promote larger projects continues to gain traction as more and more mainstream entertainment companies begin to understand the value of virtual reality. I hope we not only continue to see more of these neat VR stories, but larger, more ambitious projects as well.
THE RECALL VR ABDUCTION is produced by Mind’s Eye Entertainment who has teamed up with VMI Worldwide, Bridgegate Pictures, Invico Capital, Talking Dog Studios and SkyVR.
THE RECALL 2017 is in theaters later this year.
