I do like a nature documentary series. Back in the day the BBC used to show one every year at around the same time called Big Cat Diary. In it the team followed the lives of select lions, leopards, cheetahs and other residents of the Maasai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. Sadly the show stopped many years ago, and the residents of the Mara have not had the best of times in recent years. Still, I always think its wonderful to see such animals out in their natural habitat.
So you’ll imagine my delight when I received an email from Biome Productions, who’ve featured several times on Life In 360° in the last year with nature videos. Contrary to their previous videos in Scottish national parks the latest offering safariLIVE 360: A Day in Djuma, which follows the safariLIVE team as they go tracking on the hunt for a sight of some lions at The Kruger National Park in South Africa.
A synopsis is below:
“The film brings you closer to the action than ever before, where you are invited to join a real game drive with the safariLIVE guides. On the hunt for lions, you will discover some of Africa’s most iconic and thrilling wildlife first-hand in their natural environment.
BAFTA award-winning VR producer and curator Catherine Allen, whom, VRFocus readers will remember for her part in the VR Diversity Initiative, spoke about safariLIVE. “When we have taken SafariLIVE to audiences, it has been a real hit. Coming face to face with a lion or an elephant in the wild is something many yearn to do, but would rarely get the opportunity to. Our audience has loved the way the experience not only shows what the animals look like, but also the way it feels like to be around them. You feel the animals presence, and learn about them too.”
“Contrary to most VR shoots, the team quickly realised their pre-planned storyboard and script was almost redundant. As with the unpredictability of any safari, they didn’t know what the next encounter would be and had to constantly think on their feet.” Explained the production team. “Due to the nature of working alongside a live production we were restricted to one crew member on each drive, and it was certainly no easy task for them to direct the presenters, wildlife, camera and sound recording all at once. This wasn’t helped by the harsh environment of the Kruger National Park; from torrential rain, to clouds of dust and the odd rampaging elephant getting a little too close to the camera rigs!”
Unlike previous entires where Biome Productions has been involved this one is a part of the JauntVR library and you can find it below.
via Mint VR