Al Jazeera coronavirus explainer showcases how bug spreads in public

Al Jazeera produced a coronavirus immersive mixed reality explainer that combined a “cyberpunk” design style with a stark, contrasting scene to illustrate how the virus spreads.

During the segment, viewers see a variety of open, public spaces along with key facts about the virus, its structure and how it spreads.

The presenter stands in the middle of street and train station scenes while virtual people move around the space, helping illustrate how the virus that causes COVID-19 can pass from one person to another.

Another, separate scene, removes all of the textures from the 3D people and space that starts off as a clean, off white shade.

However, as the virus spreads around the hypothetical space, each person turns an orange-red shade.

The immersive mixed reality experience is powered by Epic Games’ Unreal Engine with 3D assets from Quixel, an Epic Games partner. The segment was produced in Autodesk 3ds Max.

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