Sony is pushing 22 Jump Street by announcing a virtual cube that doubles as a video player for clips from the film. And Google co-developed it.

Google's Sydney Creative Lab developed an online video player last summer called Google Cube. The idea behind the cube was that people could use it to produce film, music, and other art, while also going beyond two-dimensional traditional constraints. The entire tool launched for free.

Sony Pictures has now claimed to be the first TV and film distributor to use the technology. It teamed up with London agency Banana Stand and Google’s Creative Lab to promote the digital release of 22 Jump Street. The blockbuster film premiered in June but is available now through Google Play and other digital services.

Sony's cube is dubbed Ice Cube (because it features the rapper Ice Cube), and it's interactive in that six clips from 22 Jump street are wrapped around a virtual cube. You can use your cursor (or a finger-swipe on touchscreens) to rotate and control which sides of the cube you want to see. All audio is synchronised with the cube's movement.

"The 22 Jump Street Ice Cube focuses on the angry, foul-mouthed outbursts of Captain Dickson, played by the aptly named Ice Cube, presenting new memes from the character’s funniest lines and GIF-like loops of the movie’s action sequences," explained Sony, while warning that the scenes are expletive-packed.

Tom Uglow, creative director at Google Creative Lab, emphasised in a release that Cube is an open platform: "It’s amazing to see the creative uses people are finding for it," he said. “We're particularly excited about SPHE’s 22 Jump Street Cube because it is the first time we’ve worked with a major film studio."

22 Jump Street is an American action comedy film directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. It is produced by and stars actors Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum. Sony said 22 Jump Street will also release on Blu-ray and DVD on 17 November. You can access the film's Google Cube here - or view it below.

You need to verify that you're at least 18 years old in order to watch the cube through Sony's site.

https://cube.withgoogle.com/cubes/22-jump-street/watch?v=