The 83rd Venice International Film Festival Grand Prize Winner — XR Film Guide #133: The Pigeon Ring
The work I am introducing this time is the XR film The Pigeon Ring, which won the Grand Prize at the 83rd Venice International Film Festival held this year.
It was produced by the dynamic duo of emerging Chinese female creators, Director Yuqi Zhang and Director Shixin Tao. Brought together by Hangzhou Ostar Media — a subsidiary of China’s leading video media brand Mediastorm — along with the US-based 4DV Productions, renowned for their cutting-edge volumetric 3D technology, and the sound team from the Beijing Film Academy, the film was born from an elite XR team that successfully fuses technology and art at the highest level.
At the heart of the story are Director Yuqi Zhang’s own childhood experiences and her real-life reflections, as an adult, on her relationship with her grandfather and family.
Among the 68 works featured across the competition and out-of-competition sections of the festival, the film’s beautiful physical booth — constructed from multiple “white boxes” — was a striking presence, drawing massive buzz right from the opening.
As for me, it’s one of those pieces that immediately drew me in, making me desperately want to experience it.
The protagonist of the story, Lin, gives in to her elderly grandfather’s stubborn request and accompanies him back to his long-abandoned childhood home to search for the missing “Pigeon Ring.” Once consumed by competitive pigeon racing, the grandfather and Lin search through a dust-covered, old room. As they trace fragments of memory, Lin confronts the “unknown side” of her grandfather buried deep beneath his obsession.
This masterpiece successfully brings together cutting-edge XR technology with a remarkably polished cinematic storytelling experience. If you ever get the chance, I truly hope you will experience it for yourself.
Peering into Memories, Experiencing the Story — 4 Key Highlights
Having experienced this work, there are four particular highlights that I found especially compelling.
The first is the depiction of the “memory of a place.”
In this piece, Director Yuqi Zhang’s actual home is recreated using 3D Gaussian Splatting (3DSG) technology. The space carries such a vivid atmosphere — so filled with human warmth and a lingering sense of presence — that it almost feels as though a family is still living there.
When it comes to works dealing with the memories of real places, I am reminded of past projects like Traveling While Black and Anne Frank House VR by Felix & Paul Studios. The staging — placing oneself in a real space and re-experiencing the memories of that time — leaves a very strong impression, and I feel this marks an evolution from mere “storytelling” into a new form of cinema known as “experiential storytelling,” where one actively exists within the space.
The second is the sensation of uncovering the story by peering into memories scattered throughout the house.
Rather than passively viewing imagery like in conventional VR films, one deepens their emotional engagement with the work through their own physical actions, such as “peering through a gap in a door” or “looking out at the past through a window.”
Neither stepping into the protagonist’s shoes nor acting as a mere objective camera angle, the work presents a perspective as a “quiet witness and observer of memories.” I found this approach extremely innovative as a new method of expression that uses the spatial environment itself as a storytelling medium.
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The third is the physical “white boxes” installed inside the exhibition booth rather than inside the VR space.
Composed of multiple white boxes, the display was visually striking and exceptionally beautiful. However, I believe this goes beyond mere booth decoration and serves several deliberate purposes.
First, it plays a role in letting visitors physically feel a sense of “spatial claustrophobia.” Since The Pigeon Ring is a work that conveys an inescapable claustrophobia and a closed-off atmosphere, restricting movement through the physical white boxes allows visitors to experience that confinement firsthand.
Furthermore, these real-life white boxes are arranged to correspond with the locations of televisions and furniture within the virtual reality space. Because the physical touch aligns with the VR imagery while performing the act of “peering in,” the sense of immersion skyrockets, creating the feeling that one is actively interfering with that world.
Finally, the booth — which appears as an inorganic white box from the outside — turns into a framework that emphasizes the contrast between inside and outside, as stepping inside lets you peek into the past memories of a family through virtual “windows.” It is truly masterclass design, showing how meticulously the work’s universe is crafted, extending even to the physical booth exhibition.
The fourth is the climax scene, which left the strongest impression on me.
While the majority of the piece unfolds inside a confined apartment, the climax breaks beyond that enclosed space as a giant white dove appears and takes flight into the sky.
This beautiful scene possessed an overwhelming power, as if instantly clearing away the pent-up, gloomy feelings harbored by the characters. When the giant dove — the very embodiment of the grandfather’s obsession — flies away, it feels like the moment when the feelings of regret that had bound the family for years are finally released.
What reaches the heart of the viewer, who had been holding their breath and peeking through the crack of a door, is not clumsy verbal explanation, but a vivid “sense of liberation” from heavy oppression. This quiet yet overwhelming emotional drama is surely the true essence of the XR expression that captivated Venice.
Comment from K:
Winning the Grand Prize this time is truly an amazing feat! Last year’s The Clouds Are Two Thousand Meters Up was also a wonderful piece, but it really makes you feel that a work capable of winning the Grand Prize must successfully bring together its concept, story, interactions, gimmicks, and staging as a true XR masterpiece. My heartfelt praise goes out to the team that brought this masterpiece to life!
Data of Works:
Title: The Pigeon Ring
Directors: Yuqi Zhang, Shixin Tao
Country of Production: China
Year of Production: 2026
