VR short film ‘Mr. Buddha’ flies flag for Taiwan at 2019 Tribeca Film Festival

2019/03/11

Taiwan virtual reality short film “Mr. Buddha” is set to feature in the 18th Tribeca Film Festival running April 24 to May 5 in New York.
 
 Directed by Lee Chung, the movie depicts a car journey involving four criminals after the theft of a precious antique. It is available throughout the event as part of Tribeca Immersive, a platform showcasing more than 30 innovative VR, augmented reality and mixed reality works.
 
 According to Lee, “Mr. Buddha” is inspired by the crime thrillers of renowned U.S. filmmaker Quentin Tarantino. Shooting a movie in 360 degrees eliminates any blind spots in the narrative, allowing the viewer to experience the story from a variety of perspectives, he said.
 
“Mr. Buddha” was co-produced by celebrated Taiwan director Hou Hsiao-hsien through the “5X1” project. Comprising five VR short films, “5X1” is the result of a collaboration between Taiwan-based tech firm HTC Corp., creator of the Vive headset, and Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival Executive Committee.
 
 The annual Tribeca festival was founded in 2002 by cinematic luminaries including actor Robert De Niro to spotlight diverse independent films from around the world.
 
 This marks the second consecutive year for a Taiwan VR film to be featured in the event following the inclusion of “Chalkroom” by mixed-media artist Huang Hsin-chien and U.S. musician Laurie Anderson at the 2018 edition.

Source: Taiwan Today (https://taiwantoday.tw/index.php)