Work Experience and Insight to Virtual Reality
Currently studying a degree in Media Production, I decided I wanted to get more hands-on experience within the industry. After searching amongst video production companies in the Southern regions, I came across a fresh & passionate video production business – Liquona.
The thing that first struck me about Liquona on their website is that they appeared to be a small, yet extremely dedicated team of talented individuals, ranging from organised production assistants to top class animators and designers, on-point editors to innovative producers and directors.
These assumptions definitely lived up to my first day of work experience at Liquona. I got introduced to a friendly, lively group of people who are all clearly very passionate about their brand and projects. Unlike some other companies, Liquona cares about every precise detail and decision that goes into its clients’ products. Every member of staff is very hard-working and has an interesting, striking personality, which generally makes the whole office gel and work well together.
Across the week I got involved with an array of jobs, from various research tasks to working on project designs in After Effects (a software I had never used before). I also found simply talking to the staff about their specialisms, hobbies and work life very helpful and enjoyed shadowing different roles working on different client projects.
One piece of technology that really stood out for me during the week was Liquona’ development of 360 video viewed through virtual reality (VR). Having never heard of this before, I got a briefing from designer Alex who showed me examples online and let me try out some test 360 footage through a Google Cardboard headset. VR and AR (Augmented Reality) is the concept of being placed in a new or illusional environment which can be shown through video, image or gaming. VR & AR are evolving technology and are growing in popularity, so I was amazed at how Liquona were so ahead of the media industry and were working on something that few other production companies had yet discovered.
Interested and curious about 360 video and VR/AR, I decided to do some research into the subject for production assistant, Isabel. I discovered articles which stated about the many future uses of VR including basic shopping and using VR in property searches. I also found reading about how social media plans to incorporate the new technology really interesting as it gave an insight into where media, a changing fast-paced industry, will be heading next.
Being a part of Liquona for a week’s work experience has opened my eyes and introduced me to new and exciting technology which I hope to be working on in the future. The fact that Liquona are ahead of the game and focusing on the next big things says a lot about the company and shows that they go above and beyond for their clients. I have loved working with them for the week and appreciate their time and effort, and will always be looking out for their work in the future!
By Alex Torrens