A&E NETWORKS COMMISSION THEIR FIRST VR PROJECT FROM NEW MONTREAL COMPANY
Montreal, November 9, 2015. Rezolution Pictures and Minority Games have partnered to announce a new company, MinorityVR. MinorityVR will offer broadcasters virtual reality (VR) experiences as companion pieces to existing scripted and factual series, as well as original TV broadcast content with second screen VR experiences. MinorityVR’s goal is to bring broadcasters on to the new VR distribution platform that will be directly targeting Millennials.
MinorityVR just wrapped shooting A&E Networks’ first VR experience. The experience will be launched to coincide with the release of Samsung Gear VR, a portable headset that works with Samsung smartphones.
Recent developments, such as Disney’s 65 million dollar investment in VR technology, Discovery’s 360 degree second screen application, and Facebook’s 2 billion dollar investment in Oculus Rift, prove that major companies are betting on VR as the next big trend in content experience.
As American media magnate, Peter Guber, noted at the opening session of the National Association of Broadcasters Show, the arrival of VR “will change everything”, because it “drive(s) the most important single imperative: audience immersion and engagement with the medium”.
MinorityVR Co-Founder and Senior VP, Isabelle Anouk Bourduas, is excited to be a part of this next wave of content. “VR is a game-changing technology. It will open up new distribution platforms that appeal directly to Millennials, which is a market all broadcasters are keen to develop”.
Minority Media has been working with VR and VR interactivity for the past three years, establishing the high tech gaming company as a pioneer in the technology. MinorityVR, in addition to entertainment, is collaborating with the medical and aviation industries to develop VR content that explores surgical training, pain management, and treatments for PTSD.
Minority Media will showcase a playable demo of its award-winning virtual reality game, Time Machine VR, at the Montreal International Gaming Summit (MIGS) this November 15-17. Attendees will experience the thrills of time travel while interacting with lifelike dinosaurs in a virtual reality experience that Oculus VR calls the best in the world. Paul Jastrzebski (Developer Relations at Oculus VR), lauds MinorityVR’s potential, saying “We see MinorityVR as one of the top VR studios in the world, and we are thrilled with their work on Time Machine VR. MinorityVR was the very first studio in Canada (and one of the first in the world) to receive the Oculus Rift consumer version prototype, because we were convinced of their ability to create fantastic VR and showcase our hardware to its full potential”.
Members of the development team will be at Booth #210 to guide attendees through the jaw-dropping environments, and to answer questions on the immersive power of VR.
MinorityVR, with a growing team of more than 30 full-time employees, combines the resources of an award-winning production company with those of a cutting-edge game studio. The founding partners of MinorityVR regroup a wealth of experience in award-winning film, TV and video game production, including some previous VR experience, at companies like A&E Networks (A&E, HISTORY, Lifetime, FYI), Paramount Pictures, FOX, and Electronic Arts.
The complete list of MinorityVR founding partners includes:
- Sylvain Croteau, CEO (Co-Founder of Ludia, acquired by Fremantle Media in 2010);
- Vander Caballero, CCO (Co-Founder of Minority Media, the gaming arm of Rezolution Pictures; former Creative Director at Electronic Arts, where he developed iconic video game titles, Army of Two and FIFA; collaborator with Daniel Langlois (founder of Softimage) in a startup to develop VR applied to architecture);
- Isabelle Anouk Bourduas, Senior VP (former Head of Production at Cineflix; Founder of the English production division at Zone3);
- Michael Zaidan, Creative Director (award-winning writer, producer and director; former Director of Content and Editorial for Frequency Networks);
- Catherine Bainbridge, President (Co-Founder of Minority Media; Co-Founder of Rezolution Pictures);
- Christina Fon, Senior VP (Co-Founder of Minority Media; Producer/Executive Producer at Rezolution Pictures);
- Julien Barnoin, CTO (Co-Founder of Minority Media; former Electronic Arts leading game mechanics programmer, with credits such as Army of Two; currently a leading developer on Time Machine VR);
- Linda Ludwick, CFO (Co-Founder of Minority Media; CFO at Rezolution Pictures).
For more information:
Isabelle Anouk Bourduas – isabelle@WeAreMinority.com / 514-272-8241
