Apple has debuted the first scripted film written and filmed using Apple Immersive Vision for the Apple Vision Pro, with further content to follow.
The tech giant promised that more films, episodic series, and music events are being developed for the virtual reality device and will be released later this year, with “more coming early next year”.
Apple Immersive Video is available through the Apple TV app (Chinese users can find it on the Migu Video and Tencent Video apps). Immersive Video and the content being created for it are free for Apple Vision Pro users. Apple is using the exclusive content as an additional flourish to market the Vision Pro, the company’s VR/AR headset, more widely.
What is Submerged?
Submerged is the first scripted short film released for Apple Immersive Video and is available for users to watch now. It’s a short thriller set on a World War 2-era submarine while the crew weathers an attack.
Written and directed by Oscar-winning director Edward Berger, the film offers full 180-degree views of the action, allowing users to explore the peripherals of a piece of content in a new way.
“Apple Immersive Video is a wonderful new medium that expands the horizon of storytelling,” said Berger. “[It] inspired me to tell a story in a way that just wasn’t possible before, and in the process, it changed the way my team and I think about creating a story.”
“Vision Pro places you in the middle of the story,” said Tor Myhren, Apple’s vice president of Marketing Communications. “Inside a densely packed submarine, shoulder to shoulder with its crew. That deep sense of immersion just wasn’t possible before, and we can’t wait to see how it inspires filmmakers to push the boundaries of visual storytelling.”
What else is coming to Apple Immersive Video?
As well as films and series, Apple is planning to bring other kinds of content to the Vision Pro. Next Friday (Oct, 18) they will launch a short film centered around the NBA All-Star Weekend which will put fans up close to the action.
They have also announced a music series called Concert for One, which will feature intimate performances from a range of artists. The first edition will feature RAYE, a 6-time BRIT Award winner who performs with a 20-piece band.
Travel and experience videos are also on the cards, with new episodes of Adventure and Elevated both planned.
Featured image credit: Apple