HTC VIVE, in collaboration with Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival executive committee, produced VR film series 5×1, of Mr. Buddha directed by Lee Chung was selected for 2019 Tribeca Immersive Cinema 360 category.
HTC VIVE Originals’ president Liu Szu-Ming announced at Tribeca Film Festival premiere that HTC VIVE Orignals’ VR film would be heading to Cannes Film Festival on its next stop.
HTC VIVE is committed to creating self-produced content and developing original IPs. Last year, in collaboration with Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival executive committee, under the executive producer of Hou Hsiao-Hsien and Liao Ching-Sung, five golden awarded Asia directors including Lee Chung, Qiu Yang, Tan Seng-Kiat, Chiang Wei-Liang, and Midi Z were invited to direct five VR films called 5×1. Following the film The Making Of, directed by Midi Z and nominated in SXSW Film Festival, Mr. Buddha by Lee Chung was selected by Tribeca Immersive Cinema 360 category of 2019 Tribeca Film Festival. The two consecutive recognitions reveal the leading position of HTC VIVE Originals production in international film festivals.
2019 Tribeca Film Festival officially opens on the 24April to 5May in Manhattan, New York. The press premiere of Mr. Budhha opened on the 25th. The premiere attracted many international press’ attention, and the unique narrative style of Mr. Budhha also left a deep impression on the present press. VIVE Originals president Liu Szu-Ming said at the premiere, “We will continue to launch VIVE Original’ self-produced content into the world. Our goal is to cultivate the world’s top content production talents, and bring forward the content ecosystem for VIVE reality. The goal is to reach out to the world with its original content, as 5×1 will be having a special screening in Cannes Film Festival, hoping to showcase the solid foundation of Taiwan’s VR original content to the global movie industry.”
Director Lee Chung said he is very thankful for the support from HTC VIVE, Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival Executive Committee, and director Hou Hsiao-Hsien. New York is where he studied movies, and being back here feels like coming back home. He is quite surprised at how he came back to New York because of his VR film, which means a lot to him. Lee Chung also said, “Although Taiwan is a small country, there is still an abundance of creativity. As a creator, I am fortunate to be able to do creative work in Taiwan.”
Oscar-winning actor Robert De Niro founded Tribeca Film Festival. For more than a decade, Tribeca Film Festival has not only been an important event in New York every spring but has also become one of the most important annual events for the American film industry. The number of participants has increased over time, reaching three million participants in total. In the past, Tribeca Film Festival has featured films such as Hou Hsiao-Hsien’s Flight of the Red Balloon and Midi Z’s Ice Poison.