Hilton partners Untitled Project to create VR experience of luxury resort

Hilton International Asia Pacific and Untitled Project have partnered to release a 360 VR experience developed for the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island, which features sleeping above and below the Indian Ocean.The hotel had tasked Untitled Project to create a VR experience that would transport its high-income target audience straight to Rangali island, and invite them on an intimate discovery of a new concept residence. Known as THE MURAKA, the two-storey residence has an entire floor that rests 16.4ft below sea level and on the bed of the Indian Ocean.To support the marketing push of THE MURAKA, the Untitled team also developed a series of six photo-realistic CGI print visuals that were used as the basis for the print and PR campaign.Referring to architectural drawings and interior design plans, the team from Untitled Project used CGI to  meticulously build the residence from scratch. The rest of the content was created using film footage captured on site. The VR opens with the exhilarating feeling of coming to land  over the remote Maldivian island. The exact flight path was captured with a 360-camera attached to a drone.After exploring the resort and its facilities via 360 footage captured with the ground-based Mantis Pro 360 POV Dolly, the viewer finds himself on the sea bed as the residence slowly starts to form around him. Schools of fish and larger-than-life manta rays bring the experience to a climax and highlight the residence’s unique selling point.The team also designed and built the stage that would host the VR experience in Hong Kong’s American Express Centurion airport Lounge. Each part of the activation was  considered to give people an experience as close to the real thing as possible. In order to make the content accessible and easy to use by Conrad staff and properties across the world, the team created a custom VR player that could be controlled remotely.[gallery link="file" ids="240725,240726,240728,240729,240730,240731,240732,240727"]Kimberley Roberts, director marketing and communications, Conrad Maldives Rangali Island, “Our challenge was that we wanted to promote a location that wasn’t yet  built. The Untitled team was able to mirror the architect’s vision and recreate it in  virtual reality.She added that the activation in the American Express Centurion lounge enabled it to get its proposition right into the hands of target consumers who are on the lookout for unique out-of-this-world experiences.Warren MacKenzie, Untitled Project creative director, said, “The ultimate goal of VR to  put yourself in someone else’s shoes. And although nothing can match the experience of  actually being there, our approach was to give the viewer the sensation of being  immersed into one of the most breath-taking marine environments. The fact the villa  didn’t exist at the time enabled us to create the connection with nature as the most memorable aspect of the experience.”