As discussion of the metaverse continues to dominate our broader cultural conversations, we’re beginning to understand what opportunities virtual worlds will provide for us, connecting us to communities and providing new possibilities for retail and recreation. Meta, the entity we formerly know as Facebook, has adopted this as a new vision for the company, and it is becoming clearer what opportunities exist to incorporate this technology within the entertainment industry. It is true that the term metaverse is difficult to define, and means different things to different people. Our vision is most aligned with a Holodeck or “Ready Player One” future. It is real time, multisensory, multi-participant; it and the participants have agency.
Sitting at the convergence of physical, augmented and virtual reality, the metaverse is providing people an exciting way to experience and interact with worlds beyond the real one. There were 133.9 million extended reality users in the United States in 2020, a number that is projected to grow to 176 million by 2023. Interactivity will not only be transformative for the medium of television, but necessary in a future where audiences move beyond passively consuming to actively participating.
By employing cutting edge production technology, a new genre of television is being formed, harnessing advancements in virtual production and creating these immersive and seamless experiences.
These virtual production techniques can be seen in the Peacock show “Babble Bop!,” a half-hour musical dance series for preschool-age children that we produce at Dark Slope Studios. The series uses groundbreaking production techniques to render authentic movements in real time with choreographed performance artists filmed in motion capture suits. Using a virtual production pipeline, alongside technology typically seen in video game production, real-time effects, lighting and rendering brings the characters of “Babble Bop!” to life. This is then expedited in the production process, with changes in lighting applied while the movements are imported.
Applications for real-time motion capture can be used beyond scripted series, and methods developed for these productions can be used to create the next generation of reality TV content within the metaverse. Tools typically seen within advanced VR gaming, like advanced haptics and avatar customization, can be implemented into a virtual production pipeline creating something that we call hyperreality television. Those who watch a hyperreality television show would be able to experience what is happening on screen, rather than being limited to just watching.
Combining these various technologies, the possibilities for a reality show are limitless. Picture an assault course like “Wipeout” or “Ninja Warrior,” but rather than resting above water the course is instead perched over a volcano, and competitors would have to dodge eruptions of lava. Were a player to get too close to the edge of the course, haptic technology would warm the player up. A new approach to television using virtual production makes it possible for a single person to be transported in seconds from one world to another, as well as for many people from around the world to convene in one location.
While this may seem to be a distant concept, applications of virtual production are much more prevalent than viewers may have previously thought. Shows like the “Alter Ego” are already exploring this across reality television, as singers can perform behind their custom avatar in hopes of winning over judges while hiding their true identities. With facial tracking mimicking even the smallest movements in the face, these characters can be as expressive as their human counterparts.
Another example of the opportunities for this within the metaverse would in-game concerts within “Fortnite,” where geographical location is made obsolete. The game has long been a proponent of the metaverse, and DJ Marshmello‘s live performance within the game used motion-capture technology from a single location to broadcast to fans across the world.
There is still so much left to be discussed about the metaverse, as everybody has a different idea of what it will look like and how it will be used. In television, it’s clear that audiences are invested in what they consume, and are actively searching out ways to better engage with what they watch. We firmly believe that creating these interactive and immersive experiences is the direction the industry must head towards, as the future of television is one where the audience is no longer just a consumer, but an active participant.
