Virtual Reality is Driving Road Safety Awareness

If you've seen BBDO New York's hard-hitting new spot for US telco AT&T, you'll know it's a wake-up call of the starkest kind to the dangers of texting, tweeting and emailing while behind the wheel. 

The second prong of the It Can Wait campaign takes things up a gear by putting viewers quite literally in the driving seat, via an immersive, two-minute virtual reality experience. Created by Santa Monica/Dallas-based special effects company Reel FX, the simulation is set to tour 100 US cities this year, but Google Cardboard owners can also experience the action first-hand through their own smartphones by downloading the free iOS/Android app and visiting www.ItCanWait.com/VR. 

Below, Reel FX's founder and executive creative director, Dale Carman, explains how he brought suspense and emotion to the story, and why VR can educate as well as entertain.    

Can you tell us a bit more about the storyline of the VR experience and how closely it mirrors the Close To Home spot?

The VR experience puts viewers behind the wheel to simulate the potential horrific results of distracted driving. As viewers drive through streets, they encounter everyday driving interferences - kids crossing the street by a school, joggers, cyclists, swerving cars - with their cell phone use behind the wheel resulting in a series of close calls and ultimately an irreversible event. The project was created independently of Close to Home, but covers similar themes of the serious nature of distracted driving.

How long did it take to create?

The project took three months to create, from concept to final delivery.

What were the biggest conceptual and technical challenges associated with the project? 

Since virtual reality is still the “wild west,” there are no established methods, processes or procedures and everything from camera placement to stitching methodology is being invented as we are moving forward. To get the camera angle to be the right height for a first-person perspective, we had to find an electric vehicle that we could put our custom camera rig (12 cameras) on to mimic that the height of a person’s head. Since the interior of the car and the driver were created in CG, we chose to use motion capture to make the movements as authentic as possible. This was a very personal piece for me, because not only did I write and direct the experience, but I was also the motion capture talent. Also, this was a very humbling experience to truly come to grips with my own distracted driving and make the changes to really be able to get behind amplifying the fact that we take it for granted. So many of us are not paying attention to the road and we are risking our lives and lives of others. 

Most VR experiences to date have focused on entertainment; have you ever worked on this kind of public service project before? How different was it working on something with such a serious message?

This is the first VR PSA that Reel FX has worked on and it’s something that I see a lot of power in. Virtual reality is such a powerful communication medium because you are able to actually put someone in a situation that they may never actually get to experience in their own lives. For this project, we were very purposeful in not making it grotesque. I wanted it to have more of an Alfred Hitchcock feeling - not gratuitous - but emotional and suspenseful.

Which cities will the tour be visiting? How will the experience be showcased?

The tour will be visiting 100 cities in the United States, including Detroit, NYC, Nashville, Louisville, Biloxi, Miami and Atlanta and the VR experience will be the focal point of the tours, with visitors able to view the experience on the Samsung Gear VR. 

Do you see VR becoming a trend in road safety campaigns? Where else could it be used to enhance messages?

I think VR is going to become a trend in general and we will see it everywhere. Every medium that you want to powerfully put people is well suited for VR.