You can always count on Halloween to bring out the creativity and fun in us all, 2020 is no exception. This year immersive content creators have been busy using more virtual means to help us get our fear fix.
We think these are the most wicked examples of immersive technologies this Halloween, let us know what you think – trick or treat?
1. Zombie Dance Party filter from Marc Wakefield
Marc Wakefield, Director, Augmented Reality Design Studio: “It goes without saying that this AR effect was inspired by one of the greatest music artists of all time @michaeljackson and one of the greatest music videos in existence! The amazing makeup work of @therickbaker was burned into my brain from childhood as the perfect example of what a zombie should look like! The Thriller video and American Werewolf in London had such a massive impact on me as a child! They scared the hell out of me but I was so fascinated by the transformations that I couldn’t look away!
“As a proud member of SparkAR Partner Network, I wear many hats and create lots of different effects. Sometimes I work purely as a dev and sometimes I am mainly on the art side. It’s safe to say that working on the whole process from start to finish while bringing monsters to life in AR is my favourite thing ever!! Creating this effect brought me actual joy and I’m not finished with it yet. Look out for the non-segmentation, melancholy counterpart; ‘Doug’.”
Glad to hear you’re not finished yet Marc, we love the Zombies and can’t wait to meet ‘Doug’.
2. Amazon’s Pumpkin themed AR delivery box
Vas Obeyesekere, Senior Industrial Designer, Amazon: “As Halloween fans young and old seek things to do at home this holiday season, Amazon has created its first shipping box augmented reality experience that is fun, free, and can be launched directly from the comfort of your home. The activity on our Halloween-themed boxes is a great way to reuse boxes before dropping them in the recycling bin, and they underscore our commitment to sustainability with a fun twist that anyone can enjoy.”
Halloween AR is the first experience available through the new Amazon AR Player app.
Getting the family involved with interactive content by building on cherished activities is a Halloween treat.
3. Verizon Media’s Immersion 2021 escape room
Verizon Media is trapping people in a creepy laboratory this Halloween as part of an immersive theatrical thriller made for the internet. Immersion 2021 is a virtual event with a Halloween escape room experience created by the technology company’s Ryot Studio team in partnership with award-winning immersive theatre company Swamp Motel and experiential and digital agency MVRK.
Participants will be trapped in a virtual room and left to explore 3D spaces, inspect items, listen to audio and discover video files or access the open web to gather information that will help them crack a code and escape to the next room.
The two-day event, Immersion 2021, is set to provide thought-provoking insights from Verizon’s virtual event experts – a virtual event experience like no other, we’ll see you there.
4. Facebook Messenger brings 3D, AR Halloween spooky treats
Facebook Messenger is treating us with some new artwork and augmented reality experiences so messages and video calls will be a bit more fun during Halloween. It’s giving users 360 degree animated backgrounds and AR effects to use in video calls, photos taken through the Messenger camera, or activities in Messenger Rooms.
To use the spooky new designs, open Messenger camera and start taking photos or start a video call in your Messenger app or Messenger Room – just be careful who you give a fright.
5. SparkAR filter from Immersive Studios
Robin Fuller, Creative Director, Immersive Studios: “This year we wanted to try a more classic Hollywood monster filter, and at the same time try out some of the newer features that have been added to SparkAR. So we put our heads together and came up with what we thought was a really fun idea based on Frankenstine’s monster.”
Check out the new filter, Sparks and Stitches, just in time for spooky season!
See how this filter was made…
If you’ve been inspired by these thrilling content offerings then get going with your own immersive content by contacting us at hello@blend.media, start your project at Blend Market, or join our creator community.
