This interview appeared in Unbound Babes in 2017. The writer, Rebecca Paredes, spoke to a number of filmmakers who had taken the plunge into VR. Below is our portion of that interview.

1. After your work with Empowering Ava, how do you feel about the relationship between virtual reality and porn? Is VR a one-time project, or do you feel there is more potential with this medium?

My exploration of VR is going to be more than a one-time project, for sure. The VR environment is so rich and filled with possibilities, and I’ve just scratched the surface of what can be done with it in Empowering Ava.

In any genre, whether it’s erotica, action, sci-fi or anything else, VR takes the viewer beyond just watching a movie and immerses them in the story and environment of the film, leading to something that’s a more complete experience.

It’s not just the three-dimensional nature of VR, or the 360-degree perspective -- the binaural sound is a huge part of the VR experience, as well. The totality of the sights and sounds working together draw the viewer in and focuses their attention like nothing I’ve seen in traditional film.

2. As the VR industry continues to evolve, what advice would you give to filmmakers who are just venturing into VR?

The main thing I would tell filmmakers is to be patient with themselves at first, because shooting for VR is very different than shooting for a traditional, flat, two-dimensional film. As with anything that’s new and different to you, it takes time to learn and figure out what works and what doesn’t.

I’d also advise directors to really think about and plan for how to use sound in the context of VR, because it’s a completely different ballgame than sound in a traditional film, you must always be mindful of space and distance.

For example, when a viewer in the VR environment and a character runs by you, the sound of their feet hitting the pavement should get louder as they approach, and quiet down again after they’ve passed the viewer and moved along. Obviously, to get this right, you must factor in the relationship between sound and distance in a way you never need to do in the context of traditional filmmaking.

With all that said, the most important thing a filmmaker can do is to make sure they match the right story to the right medium. Some stories are just better told using traditional film, as least for now

3. In your opinion, is VR good for feminist porn / porn for women, or is it just a trend?

I think VR is good for porn, feminist or otherwise, in part because it opens up so many new doors and options for the filmmaker and deepens the experience for the viewer at the same time. That said, I can’t say for sure it’s “the next big thing” because there are so many factors which go into whether consumers embrace any given new technology.

As great as I think VR is and as much I like working with it, there are some issues and challenges which need to be addressed before it’s adopted in a widespread fashion. We need to come up with more advanced solutions for people to watch VR on their mobile devices.

At the Kaleidoscope VR Film Festival, I watched a number of movies and I very quickly realized that I did have problems with the less expensive headsets fitting correctly (I have a narrow face), while the expensive ones were more adjustable, but heavy. I'm hoping that as VR becomes more popular headset prices will become more reasonable. This was the number one reason we released Empowering Ava in a way that you could view it with or without a headset.