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The Avengers ad campaign, launched last week, employs VR that
immerses a user in a 3D world and makes them feel as if they are
in the action.
Jamie Park, head of experimental marketing at Samsung, said the
company had seen a growing interest from studios in virtual
reality (VR) and Samsung would be doing more of this in the
future.
"It's less about taking the movie content and putting it
directly into VR and more about figuring out the best way to
enhance the overall content," Park said.
Created by Los Angeles-based advertising firm 72andSunny, the
short films give people a chance to feel what it is like to be
one of the superhero characters such as Iron Man and Captain
America in the Avengers.
The campaign is made to work with Samsung's GS6 smartphone that
fits with the company's VR glasses, Samsung Gear VR, though the
films can be viewed on Android smartphones or any Web browser.
Fox Searchlight's "Wild" also used VR to promote the movie with
Samsung's Gear VR headset.
"It's an ambition that is deeper than product placement," said
Bryan Rowles, executive creative director at 72andSunny. "It's
rare to work on a piece of technology in its infancy. It will be
interesting to see where it goes and if it will catch on."
One of the short VR films for the Avengers movie co-stars
international sports figures including soccer star Lionel Messi
and professional football player Eddie Lacy, and shows their
experience being transformed into a super heroes.
In another, a user experiences a battle between the Avengers and
a robot army, in 3D slow motion, with a 360-degree view.
Virtual reality (VR) is known among gamers who use the gear to
enhance playing videogames, but the technology could start
appealing to a broader base of consumers. Facebook, for example,
bought VR startup Oculus Rift for $2 billion last year.
The "Avengers: Age of Ultron, kicked off the summer blockbuster
season this weekend and had the second-biggest domestic opening
in history, notching $187.7 million in box office sales.
(Editing by Ted Botha)
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