As VR continues to grow, the tools of the medium continue to mature as well. In an impressive demonstration of what you can now create entirely from within VR, artist Nick Ladd has produced an impressive short film using Quill and ANIMVR.
Made by Ladd alone in just four days, the short film Escape was made in virtual reality by painting the environments and objects using Quill, while the animation and some effects were produced with Animvr. The end result is a short but impressive look at how VR content creation tools are becoming increasingly mature and enabling creators to achieve a unique look and feel in their work.
Quill, it seems, matches nicely with Ladd’s broadly stroked painterly style that’s evident in some of the non-VR works on his art blog. The environments he created for Escape use extreme color contrast as a sort of lighting for the film, instantly setting a strong mood.
And although you’re watching the film here as a ‘flat’ video, the assets and environments are made entirely in 3D; it wouldn’t be a stretch to adapt them to be viewed within VR itself.
The film’s animation appears a bit less developed than the environments (to be expected from an artist primarily focused on still works), but is used effectively nonetheless to bring action to the piece. That’s not a knock to Ladd’s talent, as animation is hugely challenging and in Animvr is done largely frame-by-frame. Artist Joe Daniels has a great overview of what it’s like to animate inside of VR using Animvr:
Especially as a one man production, Escape is a promising look at how VR tools are changing workflows, and allowing creators to make beautiful and entertaining works of art in entirely new ways.
Thanks to Dario Seyb for the tip!
