A 360° VR film visualising a proposed wind farm in the Swiss Jura mountains, produced in French and German for Axpo, ahead of public debate near La Chaux-de-Fonds.
Local authorities, residents and interest groups involved in a long-running planning debate that has lacked a real, verifiable picture of the proposed site.
Showing a future landscape honestly, including removing an existing power line that would be buried underground, without turning the result into a promotional animation.
A bilingual film, now shown at public events and inside Axpo's touring exhibition vehicle across Switzerland.
A wind farm proposal debated for twenty years, still without a real picture. For the VR Video Wind Farm Crêt-Meuron, Avocado360 filmed the real Jura landscape and added the seven proposed turbines digitally, produced in French and German, for authorities and residents around La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland.
For over twenty years, a possible wind farm above La Chaux-de-Fonds, a Swiss watchmaking town recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage site, has been discussed. Seven proposed turbines have raised questions about landscape, tourism and the town's heritage status. Debates like this often stay abstract: plans, figures, arguments on both sides, but rarely a real picture of how the place would actually look.
That is where a VR film can help. It does not replace debate, but it gives everyone involved the same honest starting point: the real view from the actual proposed sites, not a drawing, not only imagination.
Before filming began, the team needed to know which locations were reachable by vehicle and which were not, a question that directly shapes how equipment has to be packed. Reaching the Sommet de Pouillerel meant a near half hour walk carrying every camera and drone. At Tête-de-Ran there was no vehicle access at all, everything had to be carried through deep snow.
Careful planning with Google Maps, combined with an actual site visit beforehand, helped estimate the time needed for filming realistically and avoid surprises on shooting days.
Site planning ahead of filming: accessibility, equipment logistics and the actual filming points in the terrain.
Rather than a straightforward landscape film, the town of La Chaux-de-Fonds itself sits at the centre of the narrative, a town that was, in its own words, thought through, built and shaped with precision. The wind only appears in the second half of the film, as something belonging to the identity of the place just as much as its history and architecture.
The narration was written and recorded for two language versions, French and German, so the film could be used both in French speaking and German speaking Switzerland.
Filmed in 360° at 8K and 60fps, produced in two language versions. Seven proposed wind turbines were integrated to scale into the real Jura landscape. On the ground location work and production: Anush Amirkhanian, Avocado360.
An overhead power line currently runs the length of the valley. If the turbines were built, this line would be buried underground. To show that future state honestly, the entire line had to be removed in postproduction, including the digital reconstruction of part of the forest behind it. At 8K and 60fps across the full length of the valley, this meant a considerable amount of manual retouching work.
Before and after: the power line removed in postproduction..
The finished VR Video Wind Farm Crêt-Meuron in its French version, embedded directly here.
The film was also produced in German. Deutsche Version hier ansehen:
Watch the German version →The film was delivered on schedule and has already been used in presentations to local authorities and residents in La Chaux-de-Fonds. Feedback from Axpo was consistently positive, the film performed exactly as the client had hoped during the project presentation. It has since become a regular feature of Axpo's touring exhibition vehicle, which travels across Switzerland.
Changing a landscape credibly starts with honestly showing what is already there, not only what would be added.
For a project debated for twenty years, accuracy matters more than persuasion. The removed power line, the digitally reconstructed forest, these are details nobody explicitly asks for, but they make the difference between a promotional animation and a picture people can actually trust. More information on the project and its long history is available from Axpo directly.
How can a VR film help with a contested wind farm debate?
A VR film does not replace public debate, but it gives everyone involved the same honest starting point: a real view from the actual proposed site, combined with digitally added wind turbines. For the VR Video Wind Farm Crêt-Meuron, Avocado360 filmed the real Jura landscape and added the seven proposed turbines to scale.
Why was an existing power line removed from the footage?
If the wind farm were built, the power line currently running above ground through the valley would be buried underground. To show this future state honestly, the line was fully removed in postproduction, including the digital reconstruction of part of the forest behind it.
What does a VR video for an infrastructure project cost?
Cost depends on shooting days, postproduction effort and the number of language versions. Avocado360 provides a detailed, no obligation quote on request. Get in touch →
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