VR’s already won its first Emmy (and a few more after that), but the platform now has an Oscar to call its own, too.
Carne y Arena, a VR movie presented by Legendary Pictures and produced by The Revenant director, Alejandro G. Iñarritu, has been awarded a Special Honorary Oscar. Making its debut at the Cannes Film Festival last May (and announced over a year ago), the film follows the journey of a group of immigrants trying to cross the US-Mexico border, a topic of great contention in the current political climate.
Lasting around seven minutes, the piece allows viewers to follow any one of the 16 characters in the story, allowing you to build personal links to them in ways that you might not in a more traditional movie.
Iñarritu collected the award at the Annual Governors Awards along with Legendary Entertainment Vice Chairman Mary Parent and cinematographer Emanuel Lubezki.
Carne y Arena now belongs to a small group of films that have won this special Oscar as they cannot be classified but still represent important landmarks for the medium. Previous recipients include The Empire Strikes Back, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Toy Story. Given the nature of VR, which allows users to look around their environment at all times and even believe they’re really there, it’s not hard to imagine why this piece was viewed as a worthy inclusion in the list.
Currently you can see the piece at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Fondazione Prada in Milan, and Tlatelolco Cultural Center in Mexico City, and it will soon debut in China. No word on a home release just yet.
