What is the concept of XR film based on Metaverse technology
隨著Quest系列、HTC Vive 、Pico、大朋VR等VR裝置在市場上的普及，VR電影、VR遊戲兩大娛樂體驗也逐漸被熟知，但你聽說過XR電影嗎？
With the popularity of VR devices such as Quest series， HTC Vive，Pico and Dapeng VR in the market， VR movies and VR games are gradually known， but have you ever heard of XR movies？
《告別核桃》就是第一個吃螃蟹的XR影片。該影片由溫州商學院的XR_LAB團隊打造，總時長約10分鐘，已經入圍了北美電影節、英國Lift-off Global Network、紐西蘭亞太國際電影節金蕨獎、香港國際青年電影節等多個海內外知名電影節提名。
Farewell to the Walnut is the first XR movie to eat crab。Created by the XR_LAB team of Wenzhou Business School， the film has a total duration of about 10 minutes。 It has been nominated by many well-known film festivals at home and abroad， such as the North American Film Festival， the UK Lift-Off Global Network， the Golden Fern Award of the New Zealand Asia Pacific International Film Festival， and the Hong Kong International Youth Film Festival。
《告別核桃》結合了優鏈時代的3D數字真人分身技術，其最獨特的體驗是能讓觀眾的數字人替換影片中的角色。據總導演李柳君所言，目前《告別核桃》已經在愛奇藝VR頻道、快手全景VR平臺推出預告片，但因為還在參與各大電影節，所以具體推出時間尚未確定。
“Farewell to the Walnut” combines the 3D digital live-action dope-in technology in the era of YouTube， and its most unique experience is that the audience‘s digital people can replace the roles in the film。According to chief director Li Liujun， Farewell to the Walnut has already released trailers on iQiyi VR channel and Kuaishou Panorama VR platform， but the specific release date has not yet been determined because it is still participating in major film festivals。
XR影片和VR電影有何不同？《告別核桃》背後有哪些故事？元宇宙在影視領域的發展情況如何？我們邀請到《告別核桃》總導演李柳君做了本期訪談。
What’s the difference between XR films and VR films？What‘s the story behind Farewell to the Walnut？How is the metaverse developing in the field of film and television？We have an interview with Li Liujun， chief director of Farewell to the Walnut。
李柳君曾從事新媒體、會展相關工作，2015年開始接觸VR領域，在廈門大學嘉庚學院數字媒體教研室任教，2017年被人才引進到溫州商學院，在傳媒與設計藝術學院網路與新媒體系任教，開設了《數字媒體技術》《MR混合現實》《電子競技與遊戲傳播》等課程，XR_LAB團隊正是其帶隊成立。
Li Liujun used to be engaged in new media and exhibition related work。 In 2015， he began to get into the VR field and taught in the Digital Media Teaching and Research Department of Xiamen University Jiaeng College。 In 2017， he was introduced to Wenzhou Business School and taught in the Network and New Media Department of the School of Media and Design Art。 He opened courses such as “Digital Media Technology”， “MR Mixed Reality” and “E-Sports and Game Communication”， and led the XR_LAB team。
《告別核桃》總導演 李柳君
Li Liujun， chief director of Farewell to the Walnut
以下為採訪實錄：
The following is the interview transcript：
遊戲日報：當時是怎麼想到去做《告別核桃》這樣的短片的？ Game Daily: How did you come up with the idea to make a short film like Farewell to Walnuts?
李柳君：我在VR領域研究了很多年，最初想的就是用元宇宙數字人技術和XR顯示技術來去創作，類似美劇《西部世界》（科幻連續劇，大概世界觀是高科技樂園中生活著仿生人，遊客可以進入到這個“世界”中體驗新的劇情/人生）一樣，讓觀眾可以參與到電影中。
Li Liujun： for many years I study in the field of VR， originally wanted to be in the yuan digital universe come and go and XR display technology creation， similar to a TV drama “in the western world” （science fiction series， probably worldview is the bionic people live in high tech park， visitors can enter into the “world” in the new drama/life）， let the audience can be involved in the film。
遊戲日報：《告別核桃》的標籤“首部元宇宙XR影片”吸引了很多人關注，怎麼理解什麼是XR電影呢？它和常規的VR電影有什麼不同？Game Daily: Farewell to Walnut's label "the first Metaverse XR movie" has attracted a lot of attention. How do you understand what an XR movie is?How is it different from a regular VR movie?
李柳君：其實我們剛剛開始提這個概念的時候，很多人也都不理解，簡單來說，VR是XR影片的技術基礎，但是它的展現形式又不限於VR。舉兩個點來解釋一下。
Li Liujun： Actually， when we first mentioned this concept， many people didn’t understand it。 In short， VR is the technical basis of XR movies， but its presentation form is not limited to VR。Let me give you two points to explain。
一方面，XR影片會拓展“觀看”的邊界。除了能用VR裝置來看，還能用手機來看，我們也在嘗試結合真實的環境來做影像內容，比如實拍溫州中心的某個區域，讓觀眾能快速融入到這個場景中，或者是直接線下走到這個場景中去看XR影片。
On the one hand， XR movies stretch the boundaries of “watching”。In addition to VR devices， mobile phones can also be used to view。 We are also trying to combine the real environment to create video content， such as shooting a certain area in Wenzhou center， so that the audience can quickly integrate into the scene， or directly walk to the scene to watch XR film。
另一個方面，也就是《告別核桃》已經在做的事情——融入數字人形式。我們和優鏈時代合作，讓主人公可以替換成每個觀眾自己的數字人形象，從而給觀影者身臨其境的體驗。
The other aspect， which is what Farewell to the Walnut is already doing， is integrating into the digital human form。We worked with UberLink to replace the protagonist with each audience‘s own digital avatar， so as to give viewers an immersive experience。
遊戲日報：是隻能替換主角嗎？Gamedaily: Is it only possible to replace the main character?
李柳君：不是的，故事中的路人也可以替換，當然故事肯定是要有主線，不會說替換了這個路人，就一直能看到路人。另外，這個影片比較特別的是很多角色都用了數字分身。這些數字分身並沒有特意去找演員，就是我們身邊的普通人。
Li Liujun： No， the passer-by in the story can also be replaced。 Of course， the story must have a main line。 It won’t be said that if the passer-by is replaced， the passer-by can be seen all the time。In addition， what‘s special about this film is that many characters use digital doppelgangers。These digital doppelgangers aren’t specifically looking for actors， they‘re just ordinary people around us。
遊戲日報：這似乎有點像《頭號玩家》中進入影視片的場景簡化版？Gamedaily: It seems a bit like a simplified version of the scene in Ready Player One that goes into the movies?
李柳君：對的，就是類似那種體驗。
Li Liujun： Yeah， it’s kind of like that。
遊戲日報：我們花了多長時間把《告別核桃》短片做出來？過程中遇到了哪些難點？Game Daily: How long did it take us to make the short film Farewell to the Walnut?What difficulties did we encounter along the way?
李柳君：專案是在去年6月份啟動的，立項後不斷修改劇本、策劃案和角色，從無到有創作了兩萬多字的劇本，製作了接近2T的三維素材檔案。主要的難點就是沒有可以參考的產品，因為這個概念是完全創新的，我們是第一個探索者。
Li Liujun： The project was launched in June last year。 After the project was approved， I kept revising the script， the plan and the characters。 From scratch， I created a script of more than 20，000 words and produced a 3D material file close to 2T。The main difficulty was that there was no product to refer to， because the concept was completely innovative and we were the first explorer。
最新人物形象動畫設計稿
The latest animation design of character image
最新人物形象動畫設計稿
Latest character image animation design draft
遊戲日報：《告別核桃》入圍了那麼多獎項，您覺得是故事講得好，還是XR新體驗的增益？Game Daily: Farewell to Walnut has been shortlisted for so many awards. Do you think it is a good story telling or a gain of XR new experience?
李柳君：最重要的是新技術帶來的新變化，它會給傳統媒介帶來創新改變，甚至推動電影行業改革。據我瞭解目前好萊塢的電影例如《獅子王》《奇幻森林》《銀翼殺手2049》都使用了Unity來做指令碼預覽。其次《告別核桃》本身是基於真實故事改編，充滿了現實主義色彩。
Li Liujun： The most important thing is the new changes brought by the new technology， which will bring innovative changes to the traditional media and even promote the reform of the film industry。As far as I know， current Hollywood films such as The Lion King， The Jungle Book and Blade Runner 2049 all use Unity for script previews。Secondly， Farewell to the Walnut itself is based on a true story， full of realism。
遊戲日報：真實的故事？可以簡單講講嗎？Game Daily: A true story?Can you tell me a little bit about it?
李柳君：是的，這源於我們一個真實的採訪片段，大概是十多年前的事情了，當時就遇到了《告別核桃》裡主角這樣的小姑娘。
Li Lyujun： Yes， it comes from a real interview we had more than 10 years ago， when we met a girl like the main character in Farewell to the Walnut。
遊戲日報：聽說《告別核桃》在籌備IP手遊和VR遊戲？是自己研發還是與哪家公司合作？Game Daily: I heard that Farewell Walnut is preparing IP mobile game and VR game?Will you develop it yourself or cooperate with any other company?
李柳君：我們團隊有相關遊戲VR應用的開發技術儲備，在我的相關課程（《數字媒體技術》《電子競技與遊戲傳播》《MR混合現實》等）裡面會全面介紹如何去設計開發一款手機遊戲和VR遊戲，涉及上百個手機遊戲、VR應用、XR電影策劃案和演示demo。溫州商學院一些學生在掌握了一定技能後想要加入專案開發，我們也非常鼓勵學生參與進來。
Li Liujun： we have related team game reserves， the development of VR application technology in my courses （“ digital media technology， the spread of e-sports game with ”MR mixed reality“， etc。） it will introduce how to design and develop a mobile game and VR games， involving hundreds of mobile phone games， VR applications， XR movie plot， and demonstrates the demo。Some students from Wenzhou Business College want to participate in project development after they have mastered certain skills， and we also encourage them to participate in it。
我指導的20屆畢業生目前就從事手機端的遊戲開發，並且得到了近1000萬的融資。當然大多數學生沒有能力做完整系統開發，主要還是做創意和策劃案。當下遊戲專案是早期準備的階段中，還沒有快速落地，現在也在找資金。
The graduates of the class of 20 I supervised are currently engaged in mobile game development and have received nearly 10 million yuan in financing。Of course， most students do not have the ability to do complete system development， and they mainly do creative work and plan cases。At present， the game project is in the early stage of preparation， which has not been quickly landed， and now it is still looking for funds。
遊戲日報：在做完《告別核桃》之後還有哪些打算？Game Daily: What do you plan to do after you finish your game?
李柳君：我會把《告別核桃》這個IP一直做下去，直到有足夠的影響力，這是很明確的未來目標。包括基於IP打造的系列作品、手遊和VR遊戲等。
Li Lyujun： I will continue to work on the IP of Farewell Walnut until it has enough influence。 This is a clear future goal。This includes IP based series， mobile games and VR games。
《告別核桃》的預告片在快手播放量超14萬
The trailer for Farewell to the Walnut has been viewed more than 140，000 times in Kuaishou
遊戲日報：聊一些元宇宙相關的話題，關於VR、AR等虛擬技術在動畫/電影領域的應用，您覺得和5年前有什麼變化？Game Daily: Talking about the metaverse, about the application of VR, AR and other virtual technologies in animation/film, how do you think it has changed from five years ago?
李柳君：2016年是VR爆發元年，VR技術在逐漸更加成熟並獲得市場接受、迎來大規模的商業化運用。到目前來看，一方面是硬體技術的提升，另一方面是基於VR、AR基礎創作動畫/電影內容越來越豐富。這個非常重要，任何新技術必須要有足夠豐富的內容作為載體才能逐步培養一個新的消費群體，從而形成一個龐大的產業。
Li Liujun： 2016 is the first year of VR explosion。 VR technology is gradually becoming more mature， gaining market acceptance and ushering in large-scale commercial application。So far， on the one hand， it is the improvement of hardware technology， on the other hand， it is the creation of animation/film content based on VR and AR。This is very important， any new technology must have enough rich content as a carrier to gradually cultivate a new consumer group， so as to form a huge industry。
遊戲日報：當前影視領域的觀眾對元宇宙這個概念有足夠的認知嗎？Gamesdaily: Do current audiences in the film and television field have enough awareness of the concept of the metaverse?
李柳君：說實話是比較陌生的，有一些大規模的專業國際電影節可能會設定這一板塊，他們會願意去擁抱新技術。至於觀眾部分，我們自己去宣傳也不會特意強調是元宇宙，而是主要講XR影片，即便是這樣觀眾有時候也不是很明白。所以這需要不斷地宣傳，需要更多優秀作品。
Li Liujun： To be honest， it is relatively unfamiliar。 There are some large-scale professional international film festivals that may set up this section， and they will be willing to embrace new technologies。As for the audience， we will not emphasize the meta-universe， but mainly focus on XR films。 Even so， the audience may not understand very well。Therefore， this needs to be constantly promoted， and more excellent works are needed。
遊戲日報：如今市場上VR裝置您有研究嗎？怎麼看當下的覆蓋情況和特點？Game Daily: Have you researched VR devices on the market today?How do you see the current coverage and features?
李柳君：這個領域我可以說是比較瞭解，目前我們大概有50多套裝置，涉及各個型別和品牌，是買來用於課程教學實驗和做專案開發測試的。現在內容大多是基於Unity去做，這也限制了國內一些裝置的功能。本人開發體驗感覺最好的是Meta的Quest系列，基本無縫相容各種需求，其他硬體還有華為VR、PICO、HTC Vive、影創VR等，但是都會對軟硬體有限制。
Li Liujun： I know a lot about this field。 At present， we have about 50 sets of equipment， covering various types and brands， which are purchased for course teaching experiments and project development and testing。At present， most of the content is based on Unity， which also limits the functions of some domestic equipment。My best development experience is Meta‘s Quest series， which is basically seamless and compatible with all kinds of needs。 Other hardware includes Huawei VR， PICO， HTC Vive， Film Creation VR， etc。， but all of them have restrictions on hardware and software。
其實也背後也反映著一種趨勢，國內缺乏足夠體量的自研引擎，一旦跟不上升級換代，前面的內容就會受限，而沒有了軟體內容支撐，硬體市場也啟用不起來。所以為什麼我會去做XR影片領域，很重要的原因之一就是適配各種硬體。當然早期我們也是用了很多成本試錯。
In fact， it also reflects a trend that there is a lack of self-developed engine of sufficient volume in China。 Once the engine fails to keep up with the upgrade， the previous content will be limited。 Without the support of software content， the hardware market will not be activated。Therefore， one of the most important reasons why I want to work in the field of XR films is to adapt to various kinds of hardware。And of course there was a lot of trial and error early on。
遊戲日報：XR在VR、AR的基礎上更強調可觸控、可互動，有人認為腦機接口才是真正能做到XR體驗的第一步，您怎麼看這種觀點？Gaming Daily: XR emphasizes touch and interaction on the basis of VR and AR. Some people think that brain computer interface is the first step to truly achieve XR experience. What do you think of this view?
李柳君：擴充套件現實（XR）包括虛擬現實（VR）、增強現實（AR）和混合現實（MR），被稱為未來虛擬現實互動的最終形態。之前IDC預測2025年全球AR/VR/XR裝置市場會突破8000億美元，外形與重量接近普通眼鏡的新一代XR眼鏡將產生，會成為下一代網際網路的關鍵入口。腦機介面現在的發展也很順利，主要是在醫療健康領域，另外V社正在開發能應用於遊戲的，我覺得未來兩者會相互推動發展。
Lyujun Li： Extended Reality （XR） includes virtual reality （VR）， augmented reality （AR） and mixed reality （MR）， which is called the final form of virtual reality interaction in the future。IDC previously predicted that the global AR/VR/XR device market would exceed $800 billion in 2025。 The new generation of XR glasses， which are close to ordinary glasses in shape and weight， will be produced and become the key entry of the next generation of Internet。Bci is also developing well， mainly in the medical and health field， and V Society is developing one that can be used in games。 I think the two will push each other in the future。
