The birth of virtual reality as an art form | Chris Milk

翻译人员: Kai Lu 校对人员: Zeathy Fu

When I was a kid,

当我还是个小孩子的时候，

I experienced something so powerful,

我经历了一件很震撼人心的事情，

I spent the rest of my life searching for it,

我在接下来的生活中 一直在找寻它，

and in all the wrong places.

却总找错了地方。

What I experienced wasn't virtual reality.

我经历的并不是虚拟现实。

It was music.

而是音乐。

And this is where the story begins.

而这，就是故事开始的地方。

That's me,

那是我，

listening to the Beatles' "White Album."

正在听披头士的《白色专辑》。

And the look on my face is the feeling

而我脸上的表情

就是一直以来我在寻找的感觉。

that I've been searching for ever since.

Music goes straight to the emotional vein,

音乐触动你感情的心弦，

into your bloodstream

融入你的血流，

and right into your heart.

直达你的内心。

It deepens every experience.

它会加深所有的体验。

Fellas?

伙伴们？

(Music)

（音乐）

This is the amazing McKenzie Stubbert

这是我们最棒的McKenzie Stubbert

and Joshua Roman.

和Joshua Roman。

Music --

音乐 --

(Applause)

（掌声）

Yeah.

是的。

Music makes everything have more emotional resonance.

音乐让一切事物拥有更多的情感共鸣。

Let's see how it does for this talk.

让我们看看它对这次演讲的效果如何。

The right piece of music at the right time fuses with us

适当时机，恰到好处的音乐片段 会在细胞层面

on a cellular level.

与我们融为一体。

When I hear that one song

当我听着那首歌

from that one summer

在那个夏天

with that one girl,

和那个姑娘，

I'm instantly transported back there again.

刹那间，我仿佛回到了过去。

Hey, Stacey.

嗨，Stacey。

Here's a part of the story, though, where I got a little greedy.

接下来是故事的一部分， 尽管我有些贪心。

I thought if I added more layers on top of the music,

我想如果在音乐之上 再多加一些层次，

I could make the feelings even more powerful.

我可以让情感更加强烈。

So I got into directing music videos.

所以我开始导演音乐视频。

This is what they looked like.

这是那些音乐的模样

That's my brother, Jeff.

那是我的兄弟，Jeff。

Sorry about this, Jeff.

不好意思了，Jeff。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

Here's me, just so we're even.

这是我，这样我们就扯平了。

Incredible moves.

难以置信的动作。

Should've been a dancer.

我应该成为一名舞蹈家的。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

These experiments grew,

这些实验在不断进步，

and in time, started to look more like this.

并且最终看起来像这样。

In both, I'm searching for the same thing, though,

在这两者之中， 我都在找寻相同的东西，

to capture that lightning in a bottle.

将那道闪光捕获于瓶中。

Except, I'm not.

然而，我并没有做到。

Adding moving pictures over the music added narrative dimension, yes,

在音乐之上增加动画， 这确实增加了一个叙述维度，

but never quite equated the power

却永远不能等同于

单纯原始的音乐本身所带来的力量。

that just raw music had for me on its own.

This is not a great thing to realize when you've devoted your life

意识到这种结论并不是件很棒的事情， 尤其是当你已经全身心地把你的生活

and professional career to becoming a music video director.

和职业生涯投入到 成为一名音乐视频导演的时候。

I kept asking myself, did I take the wrong path?

我时常扪心自问， 我选择了错误的路线吗？

So I started thinking: if I could involve you, the audience, more,

然后我开始思考：如果我可以 让身为观众的你们更加投入，

I might be able to make you feel something more as well.

也许就可以让你们感受到更多。

So Aaron Koblin and I began auditioning new technologies

所以Aaron Koblin和我开始试镜新的技术，

that could put more of you inside of the work,

让你们可以更多地进入作品中，

like your childhood home in "The Wilderness Downtown,"

就像在《The Wilderness Downtown》中 你们童年时期的家，

your hand-drawn portraits, in "The Johnny Cash Project,"

《The Johnny Cash Project》中 你们手绘的肖像，

and your interactive dreams

以及《3 Dreams of Black》中

in "3 Dreams of Black."

你们那可以触摸的梦想。

We were pushing beyond the screen,

我们在努力突破屏幕，

trying to connect more deeply

试图更加深刻地连接

to people's hearts and imaginations.

人们的内心与想象。

But it wasn't quite enough.

但这还不完全足够。

It still didn't have the raw experiential power of pure music for me.

它还是没有那种单纯音乐带给我的 原始而又影响深远的震撼。

So I started chasing a new technology

所以我开始追寻一种新的技术

that I only had read about in science fiction.

我只在科幻小说中读到过它。

And after years of searching, I found a prototype.

在多年的探寻之后， 我找到了一个原型。

It was a project from Nonny de la Peña in Mark Bolas's lab in USC.

它是南加州大学Mark Bolas实验室 Nonny de la Peña的一个项目。

And when I tried it, I knew I'd found it.

当我尝试它的时候， 我知道我找到它了。

I could taste the lightning.

我可以捉到那道光了。

It was called virtual reality.

它叫做虚拟现实。

This was it five years ago when I ran into it.

这是五年前我遇见它时的样子。

This is what it looks like now.

这是它现在看起来的样子。

I quickly started building things in this new medium,

我迅速地开始在这个新媒介中构建作品，

and through that process we realized something:

在那个过程中我们意识到了一些东西：

that VR is going to play an incredibly important role

虚拟现实将会在媒介的历史中

in the history of mediums.

扮演不可思议的角色。

In fact, it's going to be the last one.

事实上，它将会是最后一个媒介。

I mean this because it's the first medium that actually makes the jump

我这么说是因为它是第一个这样的媒介，

from our internalization of an author's expression

实现了从我们将作者对某一体验的表达

of an experience,

的内在想象化

to our experiencing it firsthand.

到我们对它第一手的体验的跳跃。

You look confused. I'll explain. Don't worry.

你看起来很迷茫。 我会解释的。别担心。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

If we go back to the origins of mediums,

如果我们通过所有最美好的幻想

by all best guesses,

追溯媒体的起源，

it starts around a fire, with a good story.

它开始于火堆旁一个不错的故事。

Our clan leader is telling us

我们部落的首领正在给我们讲述

about how he hunted the woolly mammoth on the tundra that day.

有一天他是如何在苔原上 捕获到毛茸茸的猛犸象的故事。

We hear his words

我们听着他的描述，

and translate them into our own internal truths.

然后将其翻译成我们脑海中的形象。

The same thing happens

同样的事情也发生在

when we look at the cave painting version of the story,

当我们看着洞穴壁画上的故事，

the book about the mammoth hunt,

看着关于捕获猛犸象的书，

the play,

看着戏剧，

the radio broadcast,

听着广播，

the television show

看着电视剧，

or the movie.

或者电影的时候。

All of these mediums require what we call "suspension of disbelief,"

所有的这些媒介都要求我们 “暂停怀疑”，

because there's a translation gap between the reality of the story

因为在故事的真实性

and our consciousness interpreting the story

和我们的意识将故事解释 成我们相信的现实之间

into our reality.

有一个翻译间隔。

I'm using the word "consciousness" as a feeling of reality that we get

我用了“意识”这个词来表示一种

我们的感知从对周围世界的体验 而获得的对现实的感受。

from our senses experiencing the world around us.

Virtual reality bridges that gap.

虚拟现实连接了那个间隔。

Now, you are on the tundra hunting with the clan leader.

现在，你就在苔原上 和部落首领一起打猎，

Or you are the clan leader.

或者，你就是那个部落首领。

Or maybe you're even the woolly mammoth.

又或者，你甚至可能 是那个毛绒绒的猛犸象。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

So here's what special about VR.

所以这就是虚拟现实的特别之处。

In all other mediums,

在所有其他的媒介中，

your consciousness interprets the medium.

你的意识会翻译媒介。

In VR, your consciousness is the medium.

在虚拟现实中，你的意识就是媒介。

So the potential for VR is enormous.

所以虚拟现实的潜力是巨大的。

But where are we now?

但是我们现在在哪儿？

What is the current state of the art?

这项艺术的当前状况是怎样的？

Well,

好吧，

we are here.

我们在这里。

We are the equivalent of year one of cinema.

我们相当于在电影技术的第一年。

This is the Lumière Brothers film

这是Lumière Brothers的电影

that allegedly sent a theater full of people running for their lives

据说使一整间电影院的人都逃命去了

as they thought a train was coming toward them.

因为他们觉得一列火车正向他们驶来。

Similar to this early stage of this medium,

和电影的早期阶段相似，

in VR, we also have to move past the spectacle

在虚拟现实中， 我们也必须习惯这种震撼

and into the storytelling.

从而能够进入故事之中。

It took this medium decades

它花费了电影几十年的时间

to figure out its preferred language of storytelling,

去弄清以故事片的形式去表达

in the form of a feature film.

才是其最适合的讲故事的方式。

In VR today, we're more learning grammar

在现今的虚拟现实中， 我们更多的是在学习语法

than writing language.

而不是书写内容。

We've made 15 films in the last year at our VR company, Vrse,

我们的虚拟现实公司，Vrse， 在过去的一年中拍摄了15部电影，

and we've learned a few things.

我们从中学到了一些东西。

We found that we have a unique, direct path into your senses,

我们发现我们拥有一个独特的方式 直达你们的感知，

your emotions, even your body.

你们的情绪，甚至你们的身体。

So let me show you some things.

所以让我给你们看一些东西。

For the purpose of this demo,

为了这个展示的目的，

we're going to take every direction that you could possibly look,

我们准备把你们可能看到的每个方向，

都延伸进这个巨大的屏幕方框内。

and stretch it into this giant rectangle.

OK, here we go.

好的，我们开始了。

So, first: camera movement is tricky in VR.

那么，首先： 镜头移动在虚拟现实中很难掌控。

Done wrong, it can actually make you sick.

弄的不好的话，会让你觉得不舒服。

We found if you move the camera at a constant speed in a straight line,

我们发现如果你以一种稳定的速度 在一条直线上移动镜头，

you can actually get away with it, though.

你就不会觉得不舒服。

The first day in film school,

在电影学院的第一天，

they told me you have to learn every single rule

他们告诉我，在打破规则之前

before you can break one.

你要先学会每一条规则。

We have not learned every single rule.

我们还没有学会每一条规则。

We've barely learned any at all,

我们几乎还没学会什么，

but we're already trying to break them

但是我们已经开始尝试打破规则

to see what kind of creative things we can accomplish.

去看看我们可以实现什么样的 创造性的新事物。

In this shot here, where we're moving up off the ground, I added acceleration.

在这一幕里，当我们 从地面上升起的时候我加快了速度。

I did that because I wanted to give you a physical sensation

我这么做是因为我想要给你们一种

of moving up off the ground.

从地面升起的物理感受。

In VR, I can give that to you.

在虚拟现实中， 我可以给你们这种体验。

(Music)

（音乐）

Not surprisingly, music matters a lot in this medium as well.

如你所想的那样， 音乐在虚拟现实中也有很大的作用。

It guides us how to feel.

它引导着我们怎样去感受。

In this project we made with the New York Times, Zach Richter

在这个和纽约时报合作的项目中，

and our friend, JR,

Zach Richter和我们的朋友JR，

we take you up in a helicopter,

将带你们乘上一架直升机，

and even though you're flying 2,000 feet above Manhattan,

即使当你翱翔于曼哈顿2000英尺的高空，

you don't feel afraid.

你也不会感到害怕。

You feel triumphant for JR's character.

你感到的是JR心中的狂喜。

The music guides you there.

是音乐将你带到了那里。

(Music)

（音乐）

Contrary to popular belief,

与大众观念不同，

there is composition in virtual reality,

虚拟现实中其实也有创作的部分，

but it's completely different than in film,

但和电影中的创作完全不一样，

where you have a rectangular frame.

电影将你限制在了矩形屏幕之中。

Composition is now where your consciousness exists

这里的创作是你意识存在的地方，

and how the world moves around you.

也是世界在你身边移动的方式。

In this film, "Waves of Grace," which was a collaboration between Vrse,

在由Vrse，United Nations， Gabo Arora和Imraan Ismail

the United Nations, Gabo Arora, and Imraan Ismail,

合作出品的电影 "Waves of Grace"中，

we also see the changing role of the close-up in virtual reality.

我们看到了虚拟现实中 特写镜头的角色转变。

A close-up in VR means you're actually close up to someone.

虚拟现实中的特写镜头 意味着你可以逼真地靠近某人。

It brings that character inside of your personal space,

它将那个角色带入了你的个人空间，

a space that we'd usually reserve for the people that we love.

那个通常我们只会预留给 我们爱的人的空间。

And you feel an emotional closeness to the character

并且你会感觉到对角色情感上的接近

because of what you feel to be a physical closeness.

这源自于你感官上的物理接近。

Directing VR is not like directing for the rectangle.

导演拍摄虚拟现实 与导演普通电影不同。

It's more of a choreography of the viewer's attention.

它更像是对观众注意力的编排。

One tool we can use to guide your attention

一种我们可以用来指引 观众注意力的工具

is called "spatialized sound."

叫做“空间化音效”。

I can put a sound anywhere in front of you, to left or right,

我可以让声音出现在任何地方 你的前面，左边或者右边，

even behind you,

甚至是后面，

而当你转头的时候， 声音也会随之转动。

and when you turn your head, the sound will rotate accordingly.

So I can use that to direct your attention to where I want you to see.

所以我可以用声音引导你的注意力 到我想让你看的地方。

Next time you hear someone singing over your shoulder,

下次你听到有人在你肩上唱歌，

it might be Bono.

那可能就是Bono。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

VR makes us feel like we are part of something.

虚拟现实让我们感觉 自己就好像是某些东西中的一部分。

For most of human history, we lived in small family units.

在人类历史的大多数时候， 我们都生活在小的家庭单位里。

We started in caves,

我们起源于山洞，

then moved to clans and tribes, then villages and towns,

然后搬到部落和族群， 再然后到村庄和城镇，

and now we're all global citizens.

如今我们都是世界公民。

But I believe that we are still hardwired to care the most

但我相信我们仍然天生最为关心

about the things that are local to us.

那些我们身边的事情。

And VR makes anywhere and anyone feel local.

虚拟现实可以让我们更加 接近任何地方和任何人。

That's why it works as an empathy machine.

那就是为什么它像一台 能够引起共鸣的机器一样工作。

Our film "Clouds Over Sidra" takes you to a Syrian refugee camp,

我们的电影“Clouds Over Sidra" 带你去到叙利亚的一个难民营，

and instead of watching a story about people over there,

这并不是观看一个 那里的人们的故事，

it's now a story about us here.

而是去感受一个 关于我们内心的故事。

But where do we go from here?

那么下一步我们怎么走呢？

The tricky thing is that with all previous mediums,

棘手的问题是，之前所有的媒介，

the format is fixed at its birth.

它们的呈现形式 在它们诞生的时候就已经固定了。

Film has been a sequence of rectangles,

电影一直以来都是一系列的矩形，

from Muybridge and his horses to now.

从Muybridge和他的马一直到现在。

The format has never changed.

这个形式从来没有改变过。

But VR as a format, as a medium,

但是虚拟现实作为 一种呈现形式，一个媒介，

isn't complete yet.

还没有定型。

It's not using physical celluloid or paper or TV signals.

它不是使用物理胶片， 纸张或者电视信号。

It actually employs what we use to make sense of the world.

实际上它使用的是 我们用来感受世界的感官。

We're using your senses as the paints on the canvas,

我们将你的感官 用作帆布上的颜料，

but only two right now.

虽然目前只用到两种。

Eventually, we can see if we will have all of our human senses employed,

最终，我们会看看 是否能够使用我们人类所有的感官。

and we will have agency to live the story in any path we choose.

从而可以自由地 去体验所有可能的故事。

And we call it virtual reality right now,

我们现在叫它虚拟现实，

but what happens when we move past simulated realities?

但当我们超越模拟的现实的时候，

What do we call it then?

那时我们叫它什么呢？

What if instead of verbally telling you about a dream,

如果不是跟你口头描述一个梦想，

I could let you live inside that dream?

而是可以让你生活在那个梦里呢？

What if instead of just experiencing visiting some reality on Earth,

如果不是让你仅仅 体验一下地球上的某些地方，

you could surf gravitational waves on the edge of a black hole,

而是让你可以 在黑洞边缘的重力波上冲浪，

or create galaxies from scratch,

或者从头开始建立银河系，

or communicate with each other not using words

或者彼此交流的时候不是通过语言，

but using our raw thoughts?

而是通过脑中原始的思维呢？

That's not a virtual reality anymore.

那将不再是虚拟现实了。

And honestly I don't know what that's called.

坦白地说我也不知道那叫什么。

But I hope you see where we're going.

但我希望你大概知道了 我们将会去往哪里。

But here I am, intellectualizing a medium I'm saying is experiential.

在这里，我将带领大家一起 体验这个革命性的新媒介。

So let's experience it.

那么让我们开始体验吧。

In your hands, you hopefully hold a piece of cardboard.

在你们的手中，应该都有一片纸板。

Let's open the flap.

让我们打开盖子。

Tap on the power button to unlock the phone.

按一下电源开关去解锁手机。

For the people watching at home,

在家观看的朋友们，

we're going to put up a card right now

我们现在会显示一张卡片

to show you how to download this experience on your phone yourself,

来告诉你们 如何在手机上下载这个体验，

and even get a Google cardboard of your own to try it with.

甚至你可以想办法得到一个谷歌纸板 去尝试这个体验。

We played in cardboard boxes as kids,

我们小的时候会在纸盒里玩耍，

and as adults, I'm hoping we can all find a little bit of that lightning

现在作为成年人， 当我们再一次把头放入纸板的时候

by sticking our head in one again.

希望我们都可以找回一些曾经的美好。

You're about to participate

你们将要参与到

in the largest collective VR viewing in history.

历史上最大规模的 虚拟现实集体观看活动中。

And in that classic old-timey style of yesteryear,

并且在那经典的怀旧风格中，

we're all going to watch something

我们将在同一时间，

at the exact same time, together.

一同观赏。

Let's hope it works.

希望这可以成功。

What's the countdown look like? I can't see.

倒计时在哪儿？ 我这里看不到。

Audience: ...15, 14, 13, 12, 11, 10, 9,

观众：。。。15，14，13，12，11，10，9，

8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1

8，7，6，5，4，3，2，1

(Birds singing)

（鸟鸣声）

(Train engine)

（火车引擎声）

Audience: (Shreiks)

观众：（尖叫）

(Video) JR: Let me tell you

（视频） JR：让我来告诉你们

how I shot the cover of the New York Times Magazine,

我是怎么拍摄 纽约时报的封面的，

"Walking New York."

它叫做“行走的纽约”。

I just got strapped on outside the helicopter,

我被固定在直升机的外侧，

and I had to be perfectly vertical so I could grab it.

因为我需要完全垂直才能抓拍到它。

And when I was perfectly above --

当我完美地位于拍摄物的上空时 －－

you know, with the wind, we had to redo it a few times --

你知道的，因为有风， 我们不得不多次尝试 －－

then I kept shooting.

然后我就开始一直拍摄。

(Video) Woman's voice: Dear Lord,

（视频）女声：亲爱的上帝，

protect us from evil,

保护我们远离邪恶，

for you are the Lord,

因为你是上帝，

the light.

是光。

You who gave us life took it away.

你带给我们生命 却又把它带走。

Let your will be done.

遵循你的意愿吧。

Please bring peace to the many who have lost loved ones.

请将安宁带给那些 失去了爱人的人们。

Help us to live again.

帮助我们重获新生。

(Music)

（音乐）

(Video) (Children's voices)

（视频）（孩子们的声音）

Child's voice: There are more kids in Zaatari than adults right now.

孩子的声音： 现在扎塔利的孩子比成年人多。

Sometimes I think

有时候我觉得

we are the ones in charge.

我们才是肩负责任的那些人。

Chris Milk: How was it?

Chris Milk：怎么样？

(Applause)

（掌声）

That was a cheap way of getting you to do a standing ovation.

这是一个很容易的 让你们站起来热烈喝彩的方法。

I just made you all stand. I knew you'd applaud at the end.

刚刚我让你们都站起来了。 我还知道你们都会在结束的时候鼓掌。

(Applause)

（掌声）

I believe that everyone on Earth needs to experience

我相信这世界上的每一个人 都应当去体验

what you just experienced.

你们刚刚所体验的。

That way we can collectively start to shape this,

那样我们就可以 一同开始完善虚拟现实，

not as a tech platform

让它不再只是一个技术平台，

but as a humanity platform.

而是成为一个人性平台。

And to that end, in November of last year,

因此，在去年的11月份，

the New York Times and Vrse made a VR project called "The Displaced."

纽约时报和Vrse合作了一个 名为“The Displaced”的虚拟现实项目。

It launched with one million Google Cardboards

连同报纸，他们寄送了 一百万个Google Cardboards

sent out to every Sunday subscriber with their newspaper.

给每一位订阅了周日刊的读者。

But a funny thing happened that Sunday morning.

那个周日早上 发生了一件有趣的事情。

A lot of people got them

很多人得到了纸板

that were not the intended recipients on the mailing label.

但他们并不是 邮寄地址上的收件人。

And we started seeing this all over Instagram.

然后我们开始在Instagram上 大量的看到这些。

Look familiar?

看起来眼熟吗？

Music led me on a path

音乐让我走上了这条路

of searching for what seemed like the unattainable

在很长的一段时间里

寻找那些难以得到的东西。

for a very long time.

Now, millions of kids just had the same formative experience

现在，数以百万的孩子们

在他们的童年里 经历了与我小时候相似的

in their childhood

that I had in mine.

难以忘怀的体验。

Only I think this one

我觉得只有这一个

surpasses it.

甚至超越了那时我的体验。

Let's see

让我们看看

where this

这将会

leads them.

带他们去向何处。

Thank you.

谢谢你们。

(Applause)

（掌声）