A pair of filmmakers at the prestigious TED Conference used virtual reality to allow people to experience the ravages of deforestation -- from the perspective of a tree. "It was very real: At one point I was going to take the headset off and ask about the fire," TED attendee Elle Luna said after trying "Tree." Each person buries a seed symbolically in soil before donning virtual reality head gear and an interactive vest that squeezes or vibrates on cues. Not wanting people to end "Tree" on too grim a note, they are given a real seed to plant along with information about how to connect with the Rainforest Alliance for ways to help fight deforestation. Virtual reality lets film makers take audiences from being merely viewers to striking strong and memorable emotional chords by immersing them in stories, according to 'Tree' co-creator Winslow Porter.

Source: Egypt Independent April 28, 2017 01:07 UTC