An upcoming HBO documentary will explore several communities within VRChat presented as a traditional documentary filmed entirely in VR.
HBO debuted a trailer for the documentary, titled ‘We Met In Virtual Reality‘, this week, giving a glimpse at the different personalities and real-time relationships captured from within VR.
The documentary, filmed and directed in VR by Joe Hunting, premiered at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival back in January, where it received favorable early reviews. It will receive a wider release later this month, premiering on streaming service HBO Max on July 27.
Here’s part of an official synopsis from HBO:
Filmed entirely inside the world of virtual reality (VR), this immersive and revealing documentary roots itself in several unique communities within VR Chat, a burgeoning virtual reality platform. Through observational scenes captured in real-time, in true documentary style, the film reveals the growing power and intimacy of several relationships formed in the virtual world, many of which began during the COVID-19 lockdown, while so many in the physical world were facing intense isolation.
We Met in Virtual Reality tenderly documents the stories of people experiencing love, loss and unexpected connection, expressing vulnerability around mental health struggles and questions about identity, offering a hyper real journey into the human experience of an online world that may soon shape the future.
The full synopsis also gives some details on some of the VRChat users that the documentary focuses on, including Jenny, an American Sign Language teacher, and DustBunny, a fitness dance instructor, among others.
We Met In Virtual Reality will be available to stream on HBO Max later this month.
