E57 | A Conversation about VR with the Director of The Lawnmower Man | Brett Leonard

In this episode, Marcelo chats with Brett Leonard, the writer and director of the highly popular VR related film, The Lawnmower Man (and Virtuosity). Topics include VR of the 90s, today’s technology, where VR is going, the future of filmmaking, using VR for good, plus much more!

QUESTIONS ASKED:
- What inspired you to make The Lawnmower Man?
- Did you discover VR before writing the movie or while writing the movie?
- Was The Lawnmower Man your first movie you wrote?
- Can you make The Lawnmower Man in today’s Hollywood?
- What was the budget for The Lawnmower Man and how did you convince people to give you money for the movie?
- What was it like directing a movie about VR in the 90s? How much did you have to explain to the actors what VR is?
- What was VR like in the 90s and how does it compare to today?
- Why did you portray the VR experiences in The Lawnmower Man more psychedelic versus realistic?
- Why are you such a believer of VR?
- Are we ultimately going to hook up the entire human brain into VR? If so, do you have any concerns about that?
- How do we make VR more social?
- What’s your favorite VR movie outside of The Lawnmower Man and Virtuosity?
- Tell us about Hollywood Rooftop, your new hybrid 360 and “flatty” movie.
- There is no language for 360 filmmaking. For your current movie, did you come up with the language?
- Tell us about the production challenges when shooting both with a 360 and a 2D camera at the same time.
- What was it like directing for 360 degree versus 2d?
- Are you using immersive audio in your current project?
- Did you lav everyone or did you use ambisonic audio?
- Is your new movie, 3DOF or 6DOF?
- What do you prefer, as a filmmaker, 3DOF or 6DOF?
- So is 360 here to stay or is it a stepping stone to full VR?
- If you were to make a movie today about technology, what would you tackle?
- You said VR is being used for bad things, please expand on that.
- What are your thoughts on AR?
- What do you see as the most exciting thing in VR coming up today?
- You are in full control of VR, what would you do to VR?

LINKS:
- Hollywood Rooftop Movie Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/hollywoodrooftopmovie/
- Brett Leonard Twitter - https://twitter.com/directorleonard
- Brett Leonard IMDB - https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0502577/