White Spark Pictures announces funding partnership for VR films
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Editor
| 17 July 2023
Just days before its second virtual reality (VR) film Beyond the Milky Way gets its international premiere at the Royal Institution in London, Australian factual indie White Spark Pictures has revealed that it has a further three immersive documentaries in development.
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The new development programme comes through investment from a partnership between three leading museums: the National Museum of Australia in Canberra, the Western Australian Museum in Perth and the Tāmaki Paenga Hira Auckland War Memorial Museum in New Zealand.

In what is believed to be a content funding world-first, AUD$1 million will be invested over a three-year period, resulting in the delivery of the immersive VR films - The Kimberley VR Experience, Journey of the Giants and The Kermadec Islands - which will see museum visitors transported to difficult to reach places and able to fly over waterfalls, swim with humpback whales and visit remote islands.

The Kimberley VR Experience comprises a 360° documentary flying over the edges of waterfalls, magical coastlines of the Kimberley region of Western Australia, and venturing into the heart of an ancient landscape unlike anywhere else on the planet. Journey of the Giants travels from outback to ocean, a deep 360° dive into the world of whales, including following their migration, exploring the long history of these ancient creatures and creating the feeling of swimming with humpbacks; The Kermadec Islands offers a chance to experience an adventure in a remote and pristine marine wonderland deep in the South Pacific Ocean.

The first of the VR films is due to launch in the second half of 2024. Over time, each film will also be made available to a wide range of international venues. The National Museum of Australia, the Western Australian Museum and the Auckland Museum have each hosted (and continue to host at given periods) either one or both of White Spark Pictures’ earlier VR films The Antarctica Experience and Beyond the Milky Way to great success, substantially increasing visitor footfall and continually receiving positive audience feedback.

“We are thrilled that our earlier VR films are the catalyst for this game-changing, world-first content partnership and are incredibly excited to be working with these exceptional museums for many years to come,” said White Spark Pictures founder Briege Whitehead. “At present, lack of available content is a major barrier, so it is very astute of these museums to invest in their own pipeline.

“We are proving there is a demand for great immersive content and this in turn should provide a lot of opportunity for some of the amazing production talent out there to expand their capabilities. And with production slowing down in many parts of the world, now might be a great time to investigate. We started out in TV production and continue to make factual programming. What we’re now seeing is a bridging of these worlds where traditional cinema experiences, television and new technology-led formats are coming together to become a driving force in the future of entertainment.”

Running from 24 July until 19 August, Beyond the Milky Way tells the story of one of the greatest-ever scientific endeavours in human history – the SKA Observatory, a global effort to build two of the world’s largest radio telescopes. White Spark Pictures promises visitors to the Royal Institution will find themselves transported first to remote parts of Western Australia for what is said to be “a truly unique immersive experience.”