Uncanny Valley, a short film written and directed by Argentinean filmmaker Federico Heller, paints a very grim picture of virtual reality. Heller shows a future populated by a burnout generation, VR junkies who lost touch with reality and survive only to sustain their virtual existence. That in many ways could be a stretch of his imagination, but even if it is, there are no second thoughts about how the "Virtual" world is taking away "Reality" from many.
Virtual reality is a powerful communication tool, however without the right ingredients it has the possibility to end up on the shelf. That one key ingredient is storytelling. The power of storytelling is immense, enabling the realism in the virtual world - it is the anchor, and without it a strong campaign return on investment (ROI) is unlikely.
In this fragmented world, channels to market are endless, VR experiences are being positioned by many agency partners, from digital, activation, social, media to creative agencies. The best chance to get the experience correct rests in the hands of those agencies who can add tremendous value to the script, the narrative, the storytelling and hence the overall acceptance of VR experience.
However this brings me to a very important point, the need for a creative angle to the technology. If technology is embraced with the right creative checkpoints and the right storytelling, you will have a fantastic VR experience at hand which promises a great consumer experience also, and which in turn, translates into a healthy ROI. An experience will only be immersive and engaging for a few initial moments unless the creative narrative is strong and glues the user to stay tuned.
As a part of my job, and considering the fact that Happy Finish plays a significant role in creating VR experiences, I come across many briefs with a need to “be different” so that the agency or brand are always ahead of the curve, and maximising new methods to engage with their audiences. Facing such a situation, I always ask myself, what should we bring to the table? Technology; yes. Treatment and creatives that works in VR; yes. Collective experience and best practices in VR; yes. However when I see some of the many VR experiences in the market today, it is clear that the industry still has some way to go on this front.
In our creative world, marrying technology with right creative direction and storytelling, will enable brands and agencies to merge the real world with the virtual world. At Happy Finish we are helping brands and agencies across the world to better understand how to use the technology and storytelling to make more effective and immersive brand campaigns, which differentiate them in this fragmented market. In the end virtual reality is a reality we cannot deny, better to work on it and make it an immersive real world experience.
