Over the years, the entertainment industry has changed a lot. People used to get very excited about being able to watch the first moving pictures that were produced – movies that were short, grainy, and silent.
For today’s audiences, simply observing moving pictures is not good enough. We need to feel like we’re experiencing the action first-hand rather than just seeing it on a screen. Today, viewers expect not only sound but 3-dimensional or surround sound. They expect large screens, high-quality graphics, and an all-around immersive experience.
In this short article, we will explore the technology that is making the content we consume more immersive, before talking about some of the biggesst movies and shows coming to Netflix in 2024.
Immersion and Virtual Reality
The recent past has seen an enormous rise in online casinos, and this is an area where immersivity is a very big deal. For example, when you play roulette live online, that is so realistic that it is almost the same as being physically present as the wheel spins.
Even streaming services like Netflix are starting to jump on the immersion bandwagon when it comes to creating immersive experiences for their viewers, producing shows like Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, which we will go into a little more detail about below.
Experts predict that virtual reality (VR) will become increasingly important, since its pretty much the most immersive experience there is. When you wear a VR headset, you can be transported to strange and wonderful places – almost literally. The sights and sounds you see and hear through your headset are virtually indistinguishable from real sights and sounds.
This makes VR the perfect way of providing people with an authentic experience of situations or activities they might not be able to enjoy in reality. As a bonus, you can even experience the thrill of dangerous activities like skydiving, but without the risk!
However, did you know that you can watch Netflix on VR headsets like Meta Quest?
Netflix’s Immersivity through Sound
Subscribers to Netflix’s Premium tier enjoy a number of perks – one of which is spatial audio. Of course, we are already familiar with surround sound, but up till now, you needed special equipment (or, at least, devices with special capacities) to achieve your 3-D sound effect. With Netflix Premium, you get spatial audio on all Netflix-compatible devices without having to hook up any special speakers or other equipment.
Right now, Netflix is offering over 700 movies and TV shows, complete with spatial audio and other VR techniques. In fact, the availability of so much choice can be a real problem for fans. There’s just so much content out there that it’s impossible to be sure you’ve found all of the best shows.
But Netflix has already noticed this. For that very reason, their strategy for 2024 involves emphasising quality over quantity.
Interactive Fan Favourite
The interactive film The Black Mirror: Bandersnatch already premiered in 2018. In the film, viewers are able to make decisions for some of the main characters, and so influence the storyline of the film. It has led to several further seasons that have rave reviews. In conjunction with other VR techniques – such as surround sound and 3-D graphics – this kind of interactivity could easily change the face of movies today.
Monthly Schedule
Not all the shows that Netflix has in the pipelines will be interactive, or offer spatial audio. However, that does not mean some great shows and movies aren’t in the pipeline for 2024. Below you will find some of the most anticipated upcoming movies, series and specials for next year that have already been allocated confirmed release dates.
January
Some of the confirmed shows and movies coming to Netflix already have dates confirmed. In January, action comedy fans can look forward to The Brothers Sun, starring Michelle Yeoh (4 January). Dan Levy stars in his own new comedy feature film Good Grief, along with Ruth Negga, Luke Evans, and Celia Imrie (5 January).
- Gary will be directing the heist-comedy Lift, starring Kevin Hart (11 January). For anime fans, 15 January brings the Mappa anime movie maboroshi. On 19 January, the German martial arts movie Sixty Minutes will be on offer, along with the British thriller The Kitchen.
On 30 January, Jack Whitehall presents his stand-up comedy special Jack Whitehall: Settle Down, while the Belgian WW2 drama WIL airs on 31 January.
February
February highlights include Orion and the Dark (2 February), an animated feature film written by Charlie Kauffman, and the German romantic comedy The Heartbreak Agency (14 February).
March
The live coverage of The Netflix Slam match between Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz (3 March) is sure to draw in huge numbers of fans. On 8 March, Millie Bobby Brown stars in the fantasy action movie Damsel.
April
The main highlight of April 2024 is going to be Rebel Moon Part 2: The Scargiver (19 April). It’s the sequel to the new fantasy space opera by Zack Snyder.
The Rest of the Year
May and June will see a handful of confirmed movies, series, and specials, but nothing is down for definite for July, August, or September. One or two shows are confirmed for October, November, and December – but many more Netflix Originals are in the pipeline for an undetermined date sometime in 2024.
From A Family Affair and A Part of You to Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F and Heart of the Hunter – and from In Your Dreams and Irish Wish to Soweto Love Story and Thelma the Unicorn, there really is something for everyone.
Final Thoughts
As we get accustomed to the amazing special effects in our TV and movies, we stop being so impressed. We constantly need everything to be bigger and better inorder to make an impression on us – and the casino world is demonstrating just how effective improved immersivity can be in keeping players hooked. Before very long, we should expect to see the same level of immersivity taking over in virtually all other areas of entertainment, including TV shows and movies on streaming platforms such as Netflix.
Published by HOLR Magazine.