‘Gloomy Eyes’ Is A Dark, But Gorgeous VR Animation With A Ton Of Heart
Colin Farrell narrates this three-part animated adventure from the team at Atlas V.
Atlas V, the development team behind AAA VR projects such as Six Years and Battlescar, have returned once again with yet another high-quality immersive experience that pushes VR storytelling in a bold new direction.
Debuted at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival ‘New Frontiers’ exhibit, Gloomy Eyes follows Gloomy, a pint-sized zombie struggling to find his place in a bleak world fractured by ongoing conflicts between the zombie and human populations. Driven to the confines of the forest, the undead community has actively sought to establish peace between their warm-blooded counterparts. Unfortunately, this has only provoked the terrified humans and their deadly zombie hunters even further.
Half-human and half-zombie, Gloomy feels like an outcast no matter where he travels, that is until he comes in contact with a human girl who recognizes his uniqueness. Now the little flesh-hungry ankle-biter is in love. The only problem is the girls uncle, who just so happens one of the most feared zombie hunters alive.
Narrated by Colin Farrell, this is just episode one of a three-part series that will take Gloomy, and users, deep into a Tim Burton-esque world as they follow a story revolving around love, understanding, and acceptance.
“Anything that invokes a sense of magic and total immersion is worth gold, and it was amazing to be a part of the vision Fernando and Jorge created in Gloomy Eyes,” spoke Farrell during an interview with Variety. “It’s a completely transportive and beautiful experience, unlike anything I’ve ever seen before, and really connected with my passion of storytelling.”
Image Credit: Sundance Institute
Despite the cute art design and plush-like characters, Gloomy Eyes is far from a child-friendly experience. As much as he may resent it, Gloomy is at heart a zombie; therefore the occasional flesh-filled snack is inevitable. Fortunately, Gloomy is one incredibly adorable zombie; so much so that you don’t actually care that he munches on human limbs throughout his journey.
Gloomy Eyes is without doubt one of the more polished VR films released at Sundance this year. An incredible attention to detail married with intricately designed textures had us leaning into characters models for a closer look throughout the experience. The resolution and quality is so impressive, in fact, that certain portions of the VR film had us believing we were watching footage of actual puppets.
Image Credit: Gloomy Eyes
The primary zombie-hunter, who serves as the main villain throughout the story, in particular features some truly jaw-dropping animations, including a long, detailed jacket which swayed with fluid, grand motions as the character moved about the scene.
“The world we imagined in Gloomy Eyes shows the darkest side of humanity. But we balance it with the hope that two little kids bring in their eyes,” states Directors Tereso Jorge Tereso and Fernando. “To love what’s different will bring harmony once again.”
Image Credit: Atlas V
In terms of sheer quality, episode one of Gloomy Eyes blew us away with a 5 out of 5 presentation. If you’re a fan of unique emotional tales wrapped in a beautifully-animated gothic universes that would make even Tim Burton blush, then Gloomy Eyes might just be the VR film for you.
Gloomy Eyes debuted at this years Sundance Film Festival in Park CIty, Utah. No word as of yet on an official commercial release.
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