VR festival celebrating art and cinema

At the VR virtual reality festival, dedicated to the recognition of art and cinema, KazNU students became mediators. The event, which combined creativity and technology, was held by Less Media Group with the support of the French Embassy in Kazakhstan and the French Institute in collaboration with the Esentai Gallery, the Faculty of Journalism of Al-Farabi Kazakh National University. At the exhibition “VR and Photography: French Contemporary Art”, held at the AbilkhanKasteev State Art Museum, no visitors remained indifferent.

According to Bekzat Zhusup, a 3rd year student of the educational program "Media Communications", the location of the exhibition was chosen well. This year there were ten times more visitors. The content presented at the exhibition was dedicated to viewers aged 16 years and older. There were a lot of newcomers. Interactive chose a lot works. The audience was interested in participating, participating in this without seeing the work. We gained a lot of experience as intermediaries. We gained new knowledge about VR," shared the game. On the last day of the VR festival, “Notre Dame” was the most watched. It is true that the capabilities of a virtual technologies are increasing from year to year to be in the center of events, to feel.

The festival program included VR projects that have been popular in recent years, such as “On the Morning You Wake”. This line of documentary works is built on the idea of ​​​​the radical injustice of the world, a country with nuclear weapons. In addition to the Atlas V studio project, two works were presented at the festival “Hangman at Home” and “Goliath: Playing with Reality”, which received the Grand Prix in the category “Best Immersive Project” at the Venice International Film Festival.

“What does the hangman think about when he goes home at night from work” by 2020 winner Carl Sandburg in 1922? An animated VR essay inspired by the poem “Hangman at Home.” And “Goliath: Playing with Reality,” which won the grand prize in 2021, explores the boundaries of reality, examining topics such as mental health and the impact of computer games through the life of a man named Goliath. In journalism, immersive authenticity has its place. Being on the scene of an incident gives the journalist the opportunity to explore the topic, explore it.

Journalists' deep psychological understanding of the story, as well as the detail in writing and citing data, will undoubtedly benefit from immersive technologies. Last year, the exhibition featured a film dedicated to the trip of Afghan citizen Mortaza to Paris. In investigative journalism, reporting on migration, extremist or terrorist issues, etc. This is an indispensable technological method.

VR technologies are a transformation phenomenon in journalism. Students trained in a virtual reality workshop for fifteen days. Mentoring services at the VR festival of the French Embassy in Almaty were provided by Bekzat Akhmetkazy, Alimzhan Kayratuly, Zhuldyz Zhamenkinka, Zhuldyz Zhumakanova, Zhanerke Hayradin, Ayhanym Tolepbergen. Welcoming and paying tribute to each visitor to the exhibition, VR accurately found the zones, compactly dressed the devices and presented works in Kazakh, Russian and English. Programs that increase students' knowledge and skills, passion for new technologies, will be continued by the French Embassy in Kazakhstan and the French Institute.

Gulmira Sultanbaeva