Asian VR – how to experience it?
The VR experiences available at Five Flavours can be watched in a variety of ways – on smartphones, smartphones put into VR goggles, on computers and VR headsets. The following is a detailed instruction of watching the films on each of these devices and some practical tips that will help you avoid any potential issues and make the best of the technology. Since each way of watching the films has its advantages and disadvantages, we recommend trying out all the methods and choosing your favorite one. The level of detail hidden in the experiences means that watching the film only once is definitely not enough!
The VR experiences can be played directly in the player at the Festival website. All you need to do is log in to your account, buy access, go to the film's page and press the "play" button.
Section program and access
You can buy access to VR experiences on the pages presenting the section program.
The set of all six experiences costs 30 PLN, and the Festival Pass for all Festival films, including the VR section, costs 100 PLN.
Headset
This is the best, but the most expensive way to enter the world of VR. The professional headsets, such as Oculus or HTC Vive allow you to be fully immersed in another reality.
To play the Festival films on the headset, all you need to do is open a regular internet browser, go to the VR section page, log in and choose the experience. When you watch any of the films for the first time, it starts with a short set of commercials and an introduction. Then the page will reload and play the experience. Some headsets automatically detect a VR screening and will go to full-screen mode.
Smartphone – three watching modes
Watching VR films is possible on most smartphones. The experiences can be watched in three ways:
Drag controls
This mode allows you to look and walk around in the experience by moving your finger on the phone screen. This way, you can explore the film space without moving or moving the device. This is the easiest, but also the least immersive option, in which it is not easy to change your perspective quickly.
Magic window
This mode allows you to look and walk around in the experience by moving your finger on the phone screen. This way, you can explore the film space without moving or moving the device. This is the easiest, but also the least immersive option, in which it is not easy to change your perspective quickly.
iPhone users will be automatically asked to grant the Five Flavours website permission to access the gyroscope function, which is necessary to use the "magic window" function.
Gogle VR / Cardboard
The best way to watch the experiences on your phone is to use simple VR goggles that you put your phone into. First, you have to click the special VR glasses icon in the lower right corner. The screen will split in two – each one will be showing the image for one eye. Make sure you put your phone into the goggles correctly to get a 3D image effect. The player on the Five Flavours website should detect the phone model (on iPhones you can change it in the settings) and automatically adjust to the settings of Google Cardboard-type goggles.
The best way to watch the experiences on your phone is to use simple VR goggles that you put your phone into. First, you have to click the special VR glasses icon in the lower right corner. The screen will split in two – each one will be showing the image for one eye. Make sure you put your phone into the goggles correctly to get a 3D image effect. The player on the Five Flavours website should detect the phone model (on iPhones you can change it in the settings) and automatically adjust to the settings of Google Cardboard-type goggles.
Warning! In the VR goggles mode, you can control the player with your eyes. First, you need to look down, where a menu icon and a dot should be. The dot is located in the spot you are looking at. You need to move it to the menu icon and keep in one place for a bit – this is the VR equivalent of clicking. Keeping the dot in place for a while longer opens the player progress bar and standard icons, which can also be controlled with your eyes.
Information for Android device users
Watching the films in the "magic window" mode and on the VR goggles may require installing:
If the app does not work on your device, the phone probably does not have a gyroscope and watching VR experiences through "magic window" or Google Cardboard will not be possible.
Information for iPhone users
To watch films in the "magic window mode" and on the VR goggles, iPhone users will be automatically asked to grant the Five Flavours website permission to access the movement and orientation data.
Screen turning off
While watching a VR experience, your phone screen can turn off. Make sure the phone is charged and that the battery saver mode is not on. Users of older iPhone models may need to turn off the automatic blocking function (at least for the duration of the screening).
Jak How to change the screen blocking time
Zoom
It is possible to use the zoom in function on your phone. If the image seems too small, you want to take a closer look at the details, or if you are having trouble adjusting the image on the screen to your goggles, you should try experimenting with zooming in or our.
Computer
VR experiences can also be watched on a computer. This function is analogical to the "drag controls" mode available on the phone, but computers provide a bigger screen. We explore the film world using the cursor.
Important information
Sound
Using earphones is definitely a good idea – sound is a very important component of VR films, it directs our attention and signals where something important for the plot is happening. Some experiences use surround sound. It means that not only can we look around the world of the film, but the movement of our head is also accompanied by changes in sound, increasing the level of immersion. Unfortunately, iPhones do not support the surround sound function.
Internet
VR experiences require transferring big files, so make sure you have a fast, stable internet connection while watching them.
It is best to watch the VR experiences in the highest quality possible. In case of any troubles playing the film, you can lower the quality in the settings menu. You can also choose a higher quality to make sure you are watching the film in the best quality possible under the given circumstances.