Creating A 360 Virtual Reality Video For Clothing Brand Title Nine [CASE STUDY]

Title Nine is a clothing brand that specialises in athletic wear and supports the empowerment of women through clothing. In search of an engaging film, they chose our director, Tamara Rosenfeld’s, to deliver an innovative and fun 360 video concept. Read on to learn more about the project and the film-making style that is quickly gaining popularity.

The Purpose of Title Nine’s 360 Virtual Reality Shoot

Title Nine was in need of a film for a conference event that took place recently in Chicago. The video was made to introduce their brand to new customers and excite them about the clothing. People were able to go to their booth, put on the goggles and earbuds and be fully immersed in the virtual reality.

Where and When the Title Nine’s 360 Video Was Filmed

The video was filmed in Los Angeles, more specifically on a beach in Palos Verdes, in May.

The Creative Process

One of our directors, Tamara, received a brief from Title Nine Clothing to create a compelling and fun minute-long video. She and the Creative Director at Bold Content, Adam Neale, considered 360. They discussed what they could create with the tricky film-making style. Given that the brand is all about exercise and being outdoors, they decided on a story-based concept that would feature women practicing yoga, playing volleyball, and eventually having a dance-off. As for location, they chose a beach to give the viewer the opportunity to be transported someplace wildly different than Chicago through the VR experience.

The Pre-Production Process

A large part of the concept was to engage the viewers and compel them to explore the VR. So Tamara, developed a story filled with action and movement. This got the viewer looking around instead of forward as one would while watching a traditional film.

During pre-production, the team planned places where they would indirectly guide the viewer’s gaze at each moment in the film. They also planned action for the non-focal sections in case a viewer decided to look there instead of at the main action. They informed the actors that they had to be reacting at all times, in order to make the whole scene more dynamic. They made the decision to add music as well to keep the viewer engaged even if they did not want to watch the action.

Once the story and action had been planned, they mapped out the movement they were aiming to create. They tried to use whatever they could find, including a chapstick cap. They then filmed what they had created and sent it to the choreographer as a visual aid.

The Cameras Used to Capture the 360 Project

For the Title Nine shoot, Tamara and the crew chose a six camera GoPro rig. This type of rig is one of the top rigs for 360 because it allows people to get closer to the camera and remain in focus. When shooting in 360, you have to be cautious of focus because it is quite easy for things to move out of focus. So it is best to chose a rig that will help make the subjects as visible and clear as possible.

Shooting and Editing Title Nine’s 360 Video

Most 360 shots last from 30 seconds to a minute. Since the desired video was to be a minute in length, the action was filmed all in one take. However, because there was a lot of action around camera, it was easy for it to go awry. The team needed to do about 6 takes before they had captured their best take.

After rolling the camera on the shoot, the crew had to run and hide on set to avoid ruining the reality of the video. If that had not been possible, the film would have required CGI to erase the crew from the footage.

Because there is only one continuous take, not much cutting was done during the 360 video’s editing. Also, the director was using action to direct the viewer’s attention rather than using different types of shots. This made it so that no cutting was necessary. Instead, much of the editing involved stitching the overlapping seams of the cameras together to create one seamless virtual reality.

How the Film Will Be Used

As mentioned in the brief, the 360 video was intended to introduce consumers to Title Nine’s clothing in an interesting yet fun way during a conference. The videos may appear on social media too as YouTube and Facebook now allow users to upload their 360 videos.

Click on the image below to watch the finished 360 video:

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