BBC R&D tests virtual reality with BBC Philharmonic

Broadcast

BBC R&D has produced a virtual reality pilot of a BBC Philharmonic performance as part of ongoing tests into the format.

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The experimental short, which is not planned to made publicly available, was shot last month and is being used to assess the value of VR content to licence fee payers.

“We’re following the same approach we took to 3DTV,” said section leader of immersive & interactive content Graham Thomas. “We’re not spending a huge amount of money but we are testing VR in particular programme areas to assess what works and what impact it has on other areas of work.”

Further tests have involved BBC 6 Music and a 360-degree live video stream to Oculus Rift headgear from the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow last year. Tests with the BBC Natural History Unit are under discussion.

“VR may work for some natural history, in rainforests or underwater, where you have the ability to look around and see your environment,” said Thomas. “However trying to film wildlife with very long lenses in a 360-degree virtual world may only make you wish for a pair of binoculars.”

BBC R&D’s interest stems from its work in spatial audio - creating cinema style surround sound with a standard set of headphones. It has devised a tool to help sound editors match spatial audio to 360-degree video and is using this to post-produce the VR music pilots.

“If you’re experiencing a concert hall in VR you need an accurate understanding of the relationship between what you are hearing in front of you and from each side,” says Thomas.

The VR research is also feeding into BBC R&D’s examination of higher dynamic range for better quality Ultra HD.

“In a 360-degree video of a sports stadia, for example, you are capturing a scene in all directions including areas of bright sunlight or dark shadows,” Thomas explains. “Whereas the iris of conventional cameras can be adjusted to pick out a range of contrasts there are currently restrictions on this in 360 coverage but there are areas of overlap we are exploring.”

In a separate VR experiment last June, BBC Future Media and London production firm Visualise filmed behind the scenes at the BBC newsroom with presenter Fiona Bruce.