On July 14, MESON Inc. and Hakuhodo DY Inc Holdings. announced the results of a psychological experiment on the shooting distance of immersive videos. The two companies used Apple Vision Pro to verify the impact of the shooting distance of the video on the viewer.
This experiment was conducted with the cooperation of the idol group STU48. Two types of immersive videos were produced using different shooting distances, focusing on live performances by the 4th generation trainees. Specifically, two videos were prepared: one shot at a close distance of 1,200mm from the performers, and another shot at a long distance of 7,600mm. Twenty-four people interested in STU48 participated in the study, experiencing and evaluating each video.
The verification results showed that footage shot from a close distance to the performer improved the sense of being present. In immersive video, the camera position functions as the viewer’s own point of view, so differences in shooting distance are not merely differences in how things look. This significantly impacts the spatial experience—how one feels to be in the video space.
Furthermore, a significant increase in psychological closeness with the performers was also observed. In this study, psychological distance was measured using a scale that represented the relationship between oneself and the other person by the degree of overlap of circles. The results showed that after experiencing close-up videos, the perceived distance from the performers in the content decreased compared to after experiencing long-distance videos.
The results of this research have been compiled into a paper and published on arXiv on June 8th. A Japanese version of the white paper is available on MESON Co., Ltd.’s official website. Both companies plan to leverage these findings to apply them to a wide range of fields, including live entertainment and tourism.
Immersive Video: Paper Abstract
| Paper Title | Enhancing Presence, Deepening Fan Intensity: How Presence in Immersive Video Shapes Psychological Closeness to Performers |
| author | Toida, K., Hiranuma, H., Miura, S., Yamamoto, N., Kobayashi, Y., & Meguro, S. |
| Publication destination | arXiv https://arxiv.org/pdf/2606.08912 |
| Release date | June 8, 2026 |
| White paper | Published on the MESON Corporation corporate website. https://www.meson.tokyo/media/immersive-video-wp/ |
This article is an English translation of an original Japanese article, translated by the Mogura VR editorial team.
