Facebook sees movies as the next big thing for Oculus Rift

Facebook sees movies as the next big thing for Oculus Rift
Sex and the City 3 jumped the shark

Virtual reality is destined to go well beyond gaming, and movies seem the obvious next conquest.

According to Cory Ondrejka, Facebook's VP of mobile engineering, Facebook sees it too.

The announcement that Facebook was buying Oculus Rift was a sign that it had wider plans for VR and, speaking during a keynote presentation at this week's Hollywood IT Summit, Ondrejka said that he sees Oculus Rift expanding into movies.

"I am completely excited about the intersection of Hollywood and virtual reality," he said. "I think what we're going to see over the next coming year is going to be truly spectacular."

Visionaries

According to Ondrejka, Imax and CGI-heavy films are ripe for virtual reality. "The assets that were already produced to make the movie can be re-rendered and can be reused to create new experiences," he said.

"I would expect that Imax is going to be one of the killer experiences."

We've also learned that Zuckerberg took Sony's Project Morpheus for a spin a week before purchasing Oculus Rift.

PlayStation marketing executive Guy Longworth said during a session at this year's Games Marketing Summit that he remembers Zuckerberg asking "Can I have a tech demo?"

Seems Zuck was sneakily weighing up the competition.

Hugh Langley

Hugh Langley is the ex-News Editor of TechRadar. He had written for many magazines and websites including Business Insider, The Telegraph, IGN, Gizmodo, Entrepreneur Magazine, WIRED (UK), TrustedReviews, Business Insider Australia, Business Insider India, Business Insider Singapore, Wareable, The Ambient and more.

Hugh is now a correspondent at Business Insider covering Google and Alphabet, and has the unfortunate distinction of accidentally linking the TechRadar homepage to a rival publication.

Latest in Virtual Reality Gaming
Hitman's Agent 47 strangling someone while dressed as a sailor
‘Never say never’ – we ask Hitman developer if Project 007 is coming to VR, and learn how Hitman VR was fixed for PSVR 2
Agent 47 holding up duel pistols with a PSVR 2 headset outline over his head
I can’t believe it either, Hitman on PSVR 2 is actually, finally a great VR port of the World of Assassination trilogy – and my new favorite way to play the series
Meta Quest 3 in white with Batman: Arkham Shadow bundle on red background with don't miss text
Get a $50 gift card with this Meta Quest 3 + Batman Arkham Shadow bundle at Best Buy
A Dragonborn warrior, Tiefling rogue and Halfling mage preparing for battle next to a sign saying "Demeo x Dungeons & Dragons: Battlemarked"
First Dungeons & Dragons VR trailer teases a beginner-friendly tabletop game – but I’m just begging for a custom game mode
Meta Quest 3S with Batman: Arkham Shadow banner behind it and red background with black TechRadar lowest price sign
Save $50 on the Meta Quest 3S with a free copy of Batman: Arkham Shadow
Aliens crawl out of the dark to attack Zula
Alien: Rogue Incursion review: superb survival horror with monsters I wish were more terrifying
Latest in News
Open AI
OpenAI live stream - could we see a major ChatGPT upgrade?
Apple WWDC 2025 announced
Apple just announced WWDC 2025 starts on June 9, and we'll all be watching the opening event
Hornet swings their weapon in mid air
Hollow Knight: Silksong gets new Steam metadata changes, convincing everyone and their mother that the game is finally releasing this year
OpenAI logo
OpenAI just launched a free ChatGPT bible that will help you master the AI chatbot and Sora
NetSuite EVP Evan Goldberg at SuiteConnect London 2025
"It's our job to deliver constant innovation” - NetSuite head on why it wants to be the operating system for your whole business
Monster Hunter Wilds
Monster Hunter Wilds Title Update 1 launches in early April, adding new monsters and some of the best-looking armor sets I need to add to my collection