Virtual reality and its close relatives, such as extended reality, have been completely accepted into the workflow of high-end productions. Stepping into an LED volume, you can be transported anywhere from Antarctica to a planet embroiled in an imagined science fiction war. All it takes is a lot of pixels and a good imagination.
[Editor’s note: Here are a few of the examples of virtual reality technologies and case studies that were on display during the 2024 NAB Show. This article first appeared in the NAB Daily.]
MO-SYS VFX SOLUTION FOR DR. WHO ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL:
Mo-Sys Engineering recently announced that NearTime, its automated re-rendering service for on-set virtual production, was used to deliver VFX scenes for the “Dr. Who” 60th Anniversary Specials. In 2022, award-winning boutique studio Painting Practice, with CGI, animation and VFX specialists RealTime, approached Mo-Sys to develop a cost-efficient workflow for an episode of “Dr. Who” that required more than 250 VFX shots and was expected to be heavily VFX-dependent. Traditional VFX approaches would have been cost-prohibitive for this episode.
RealTime and Mo-Sys had previously collaborated on a Netflix production called “Dance Monsters,” which involved combining six cameras and eight monster characters in real time using the Unreal Engine and Mo-Sys VP Pro to create a live light-entertainment show. As part of this project, Mo-Sys and RealTime developed a pipeline for transferring precision camera and lens tracking data from Mo-Sys StarTracker through to post production to help automate and dramatically speed up the VFX workload.
By putting pre-visualization, on-set camera tracking, real-time pre-viz, NearTime rendering and automated VFX pipelines together, this VFX-heavy episode of “Dr. Who” was completed with stunning visuals at a fraction of the cost of traditional VFX.
XR STUDIOS “DANCING WITH THE STARS”:
XR Studios, a Los Angeles-based facility with two LED volume studios, put together the season premiere opening for the Disney+ reality series “Dancing With the Stars” using a science fiction theme. Studio A has a 71-foot wide LED volume that is 20-foot tall and curved to provide a depth of 35 feet. Studio A also has an LED floor and a large movable LED panel that can be used to provide special lighting/background effects.
The overhead lighting grid uses many Kino Flo MIMIK light panels that can provide an LED ceiling. The MIMIK lights can also be put on stands to create lighting effects as needed in the production. For “Dancing With the Stars,” the LED volume was used to create an entirely fictional world, complete with spacecraft and hulking planets. The season premiere opening featured the two hosts of the show traveling in space through disco-themed planets.
“They really wanted to get people looking as if they’re traveling through hyperspace, so we put two Kino Flo lights on lowboy stands right beneath them tilted up at their faces,” said J. T. Rooney, virtual production supervisor at XR Studios.
“The lights had hyperspace content that the talent could see and react to.” A little bit of realism in an unrealistic environment.
BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE INTEL EXTREME MASTERS — COLOGNE 2023:
In August 2023, the Intel Extreme Masters (IEM) was held in Cologne, Germany. Extreme sports fans filled LANXESS Arena for the final three days of the competition, dubbed “The Cathedral of Counter-Strike.” This event drew a sizable live audience and more than 700,000 fans online to watch the world’s top Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) teams go head-to-head.
IEM entrusted Rocket Surgery Virtual Productions to enhance the video with augmented reality (AR) graphics, immersing the audience and fans at home deeper into the action. Rocket Surgery used a range Ross Video’s augmented-reality technology, including the Voyager Render Platform based on the Unreal Engine, Ultrix hyperconverged routers, a Carbonite Ultra production switcher and an OpenGear frame equipped with a range of signal processing cards. Complementing this array of production room technology was the use of the Spidercam cable-based camera system to provide unique visuals and feed the tracking data required to power the AR images.
To address the challenges presented by the rapid pace of online gameplay, Ross developed a tailored solution combining DashBoard and Datalinq to integrate all their video game APIs and devices directly into the production workflow. Rocket Surgery then programmed a custom DashBoard control panel using the RossTalk protocol, that allowed operators to automatically merge inputs and data with AR graphics in real time.
RESOLUTION STUDIOS IS VIRTUAL THE CENTER OF CHICAGO:
Resolution Studios is an 86,000-square-foot production complex used for a variety of projects including TV commercials, TV episodes and feature films, located in Chicago’s Near West Side. Planar recently added 400 Planar Venue Pro VX Series indoor LED video wall displays with a 1.9mm pixel pitch that, when fully assembled, form a curved, 80-foot-wide by 14-foot-high LED volume.
Designed for the demands of temporary LED video wall setups, the Planar Venue Pro VX features magnetically attachable cabinets and a quick-lock system for securing cabinets together. The full 80-foot by 14-foot volume can be reasonably reconfigured into an LED video wall that is 60-foot wide and 20-foot tall, or even broken up into multiple formations.
“We definitely have common configurations that we use over and over, but certain shoots require specific layouts,” said Todd Freese, senior vice president and chief technology officer with Resolution Productions Group. “For instance, the way we will set up an LED video wall for a car process shot is completely different than what we would do for a narrative. I don’t ever want to have the conversation of trying to convince a director to shoehorn their creative into a permanent installation that may not be right.”
WHISTLING WOODS EXPLORES INDIA’S CULTURE WITH VIRTUAL REALITY:
Whistling Woods International, a film and creative arts institute nestled in the heart of Bollywood/Mumbai Filmcity in India, is working on projects that combine the country’s rich cultural heritage with immersive storytelling. The Kumbh Mela, occurring every 12 years, is the world’s largest gathering of humanity, where more than 220 million people make their way to a specially constructed city on the banks of the Ganges River. The last Kumbh happened in 2019 and the Whistling Woods crew was there to shoot it.
“Kumbh Mela 2019” will surround viewers in a kaleidoscope of colors, culture and spiritual fervor, as millions of devotees converge for this extraordinary pilgrimage. Through the use of 360 video and virtual reality, this project promises to offer a unique perspective on the Kumbh Mela, highlighting its significance as a symbol of spiritual enlightenment and collective harmony.
With more than 100 hours of content banked, the outlines for what will go on to become the most comprehensive and immersive showcase of the Kumbh are ready and so is a 7-minute trailer. The entire comprehensive docuseries should be completed later this year.
Copyright NAB 2024.
