Virtual Reality is now.

Interview with konceptvr‘s Head of Immersive Content, Max Bolotov. Koncept VR was recently acquired by Freedom360:

1/ What is Koncept VR?

Koncept VR is a end to end virtual reality agency that specializes in production and distribution of 360 video content and VR experiences.

2/ What is your role at Koncept VR?

My official title is “Head of Immersive Content” - I manage all of the content we publish and make sure our clients are happy with the final product. I also spend a lot of time on-site managing some of our VR and 360 video shoots.

3/ How did you and your co-founders first decide that you wanted to make a company together?

Myself and Alexander Chechelnitsky formed Koncept VR in December of 2014 with a goal of creating high quality immersive content for future of the digital age. We come from a background of panoramic photography so panoramic video was like second nature to us, as soon as we got our hands on our first 360 video rig we completely fell in love with this industry.

About 6 months later, we were approached by Joergen Geerds from Freedom360, the manufacturer of the original 360 video rig and a pioneer in VR field, with an idea of joining forces to create an even grander solution for the huge demand of VR in the creative field. Weeks later we were all in consensus and Freedom360 acquired Koncept VR to become the VR production division of Freedom360.

After this acquisition the two founding members hold executive positions in the company and will continue to oversee its future development. But we have no doubt that under the new leadership of Joergen Geerds & Dr. Ulrike Futschik we will be able to really put our mark on the VR industry.

4/ What sets you apart from other agencies (such as Jaunt, VRSE, etc.) trying to help the brands develop 360 video content and VR experiences?

To put it simply, we are creating 360 video content with the original 360 camera mount creators.

There are few ways to shoot VR content and one of the best ways to get fully immersive content ( no nadir hole - completely 360 degrees ) is to use a 6 Go Pro system. Freedom360 came up with the original geometry for this design in 2012 and now Koncept VR gets to take full advantage of this knowledge and the system to create our VR content.

5/ What are Koncept VR’s plans for this year?

Our official announcement about the merger is fairly recent but the two companies have been working for the past month on establishing new headquarters for the joint venture. This will allow us to expand even more and take on projects we always wanted to be apart of. For example we have our eyes on creating full feature VR films, VR documentaries and editorial pieces. To quote Chris Milk “virtual reality can create the ultimate empathy machine” - which we agree with completely and understand that great storytelling in VR will result in a brand new way that humans can interact with each other across the globe.

6/ Tell me more about your plans with Freedom360— or at least what you can make public.

We are aiming high. We joined the Freedom360 family as the virtual reality production agency to increase our manpower and creative force. We have our eyes set on full feature films and VR documentaries. We are hoping to use VR storytelling to convey big ideas and immerse people into  scenarios they regularly wouldn’t be exposed to. Our Creative Director - Joergen Geerds, is a brilliant man with a lot of 360 video background. With his fresh new direction for the company we will surely become one of the premier virtual reality agencies in US.

7/ What advice would you like to give to any new VR content creator?

VR is a brand new industry so you should treat it like one. For example, one should not necessarily apply what you knows from film, since you are now shooting with multiple cameras and your canvas in not a cropped format but rather the entire world around the camera. Treat it like an open world and make sure to immerse yourself, as the content creator, first into the environment before trying to shoot anything for somebody else.

8/ What advancements do you think we need to see in order to get virtual reality ‘mainstream’?

I believe VR is already mainstream! The signs are certainly there. Big projects like Conan 360, and the companion VR piece for the new Terminator movie really prove that VR is getting more traction and is only getting started.

9/ What other VR content do you have in the works to come out in 2015?