Jan 2, 2019 · 27m · a16z
a16z Podcast | Writing a New Language of Storytelling with Virtual Reality
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In this a16z podcast episode, Vrse founder Chris Milk and Andreessen Horowitz partner Chris Dixon explore how virtual reality is emerging as a revolutionary storytelling medium. They discuss the new narrative grammar of VR, its power to induce empathy and psychological presence, technical hurdles like motion sickness, and the long-term timeline for social VR and industry adoption.
How this conversation actually went
Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. How this is scored →
The host as informed peer 4.7 Guest teaching 2.9 Guest disagreement 1.0 The host pushing back 1.3
speaking balance: gold is the host, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 13:26 Rejecting Cinema Comparison Premise
Milk directly pushes back against the panelist's assumption that VR is deficient because it lacks cinema socialization, pointing out that books are solitary without being considered flawed.
Hardest push from the host ▶ 23:57 Refocusing Dan's Multi-Part QuestionDixon interjects to re-frame and sharpen the panelist's lengthy technical question into a precise question about when VR will become a mass medium.
Biggest teaching moment ▶ 13:35 Explaining Unique Medium RulesMilk educates the panelist on media theory, demonstrating why forcing VR into the historical molds of cinema misinterprets how new storytelling technologies function.
The host holds their own ▶ 10:34 Citing Valve's Abrash Presence ResearchDixon exhibits deep industry expertise by detailing Michael Abrash's cliff experiments at Valve and explaining the neurological mechanics of presence.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
| Chapter | Topic | The host as informed peer | Guest teaching | Guest disagreement | The host pushing back | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Developing the Grammar and Language of VR | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | Chris Dixon shares his own observations about first-person versus third-person game mechanics in VR, explaining why calmer experiences work better. Milk gently reframes Dixon's grammar metaphor into sounding out words. | |
| Empathetic Storytelling and United Nations VR Projects | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | Dixon asks a brief prompt about VR projects, and Milk gives a lengthy monologue explaining his work with the UN on empathy-driven VR documentaries. Dixon remains in purely receptive listening mode. | |
| Motion Sickness, Camera Movement, and Creative Rule-Breaking | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | Dixon demonstrates strong technical grasp by pointing out that vestibular sickness relates to acceleration rather than constant velocity, and draws parallels to early film history such as Charlie Chaplin films. Milk validates Dixon's points and expands on breaking rules creatively. | |
| Psychological Presence and VR as the Final Medium | 6 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Dixon cites technical research from Michael Abrash at Valve regarding psychological presence and how VR tricks the lizard brain. Milk enthusiastically builds on this premise to argue VR is the final medium. | |
| Solitary Viewing vs. Collective Social Experiences | 2 | 5 | 3 | 1 | When a panelist asks about losing the shared movie theater experience, Milk challenges the premise, noting that no one criticizes books for being solitary. Milk playfully points out he will answer and then contradict himself. | |
| Social VR and Interactive Presence in Oculus Toybox | 7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | Dixon leads the segment with detailed firsthand descriptions of cutting-edge demos like Oculus Toybox and environmental sensory feedback in Game of Thrones demos. Milk agrees with Dixon's observations on sensory integration. | |
| VR Camera Technology and Production Constraints | 7 | 3 | 2 | 3 | Dixon reframes a multi-part audience question into a clear inquiry on mass market adoption timelines, then provides an authoritative historical parallel comparing VR flywheels to the evolution of mobile tech from 1993 to the iPhone. Milk outlines current technical constraints around file sizes and cloud infrastructure. |
Statements from this episode (13)
Dixon: First-person shooter games perform poorly in virtual reality
“Everyone originally thought it would be first person games, and those turned out to be actually very bad in VR. And they actually, you know, because if you think about it, you're now in the body of that person, and all of these things we've built, like, people…”
Milk: Virtual reality is the ultimate empathy machine
“With the audience, and the subject matter, and the characters inside of the virtual reality worlds that you're building, and there's a lot of, and I talk about this, and I did a pet talk about this whole topic, is like, I'm saying virtual reality is like, it i…”
Milk: Vrse targets world leaders at Davos with UN VR documentaries
“We're not just showing it to people on the streets raising money, which we are doing, but we're also specifically targeting world leaders, both in the United Nations and places like Davos and the World Economic Forum, the people that can actually affect change…”
Milk: VR camera movement avoids nausea if kept at constant velocity
“What we found was that you can move the camera if you keep it at a constant motion.”
Milk: Discovering the VR equivalent of a movie will take years
“We don't know, it's not going to be about making a movie in virtual reality. It's about figuring out what the equivalent of a movie is, what a movie is to cinema or film what is the equivalent of that in virtual reality, and that will take years to figure out”
Milk: VR uniquely drives emotion by directly manipulating viewer physical biology
“That's a hundred percent a creative tool that we, and it's a tool that we've never had in any other medium because I'm, like, I'm actually getting inside of you and tweaking your physical biology and making you feel like something on an emotional standpoint fr…”
Dixon: Valve VR research shows virtual cliffs trigger involuntary physical reactions
“They did these studies where people would look down into virtual, like, they're standing in a room, obviously, but there's, like, they look down as if they're seeing a cliff, and they've done it a hundred times, and they know it's not a cliff, and yet they are…”
Milk: Virtual reality is the final storytelling medium in human history
“This is the last medium and the reason that is, is because it's the, it is the first, it's the first medium where the technology actually allows the jump from it being, like, An observable technology to being a human interface where the technology is not obser…”
Milk: VR is a distinct medium whose solitary nature resembles reading
“It is a completely different medium, and it's going to have its own set of rules, its own set of pluses and minuses, and people don't talk about books not being, you know, a worthwhile, valid medium because you can't sit in a room with a hundred other people a…”
Milk: Shared VR experiences will not rely on theaters or physical pods
“I don't think it's converted movie theaters. I don't think it's pods and we're actually working on a number of different ways to accomplish this”
Dixon: VR's perception gap between outside observer and user is unprecedented
“The delta between how it looks and how it experiences is wider than any other technology in my view.”