Hollywood learns a new storytelling language for VR

Virtual reality filmmakers are grappling with these challenges as they explore a medium that hasn't had a century to develop the way movies have.

Much the way early cinematographers had to discover cuts, wide shots and perspective, VR filmmakers find themselves making things up as they go along, often mashing up traditional movies and video-game techniques along the way.

In an early version of the Oculus short "Lost," audiences got distracted by looking at foliage or the moon and didn't pay attention to a giant, disembodied hand that's the subject of the piece, says creative director Saschka Unseld.

At Montreal-based Felix & Paul Studios, filmmakers have exploded the traditional separation between film and filmgoer by making "Who am I?" a central question — sometimes even a mystery — for VR participants.

From a seat in the player's cluttered apartment, you can look at his wall art, peruse his collectibles and even watch his dog.

Apatosaurus, you start off in a forest next to a jeep; a coffee mug and two-way radio lay within arm's reach.

Vrse, a Los Angeles-based virtual reality studio that has worked with The New York Times, Vice News and others, has a signature documentary style involving a voice-over and stationary VR camera placement right in the middle of the action.

Creative director Chris Milk acknowledged the hand-held camera and bouncing, shaky movements make the viewer "a little queasy."

Turns out it's not motion so much as the acceleration and deceleration that makes people feel sick — the same way taking off and landing in a plane feel a lot worse than just cruising at 30,000 feet.

Many virtual reality filmmakers avoid motion because it induces nausea, but Milk says injecting a touch of acceleration is a new way for directors to provoke an emotional response.