Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1488128
www.postmagazine.com 24 POST NOV/DEC 2022 OUTLOOK VIRTUAL PRODUCTION hat if you could shoot on a virtual production stage so huge you could build a road inside it? Or cover a full stadium with its LED walls? With cluster rendering, this is not only possi- ble, but easy. Developed in partnership with Epic Games, Disguise cluster rendering lets you split your realtime content into segments so that each slice can be rendered by a different render node. With rendering shifted across machines, you're no longer limited to a single GPU. That means realtime environments can be displayed at infinite resolution for higher quality — and bigger stages — than ever before. In 2023, we expect this to be a game-changer. The virtual production market is set to be worth $6.79 billion by 2030, and an increasing amount of film and TV will be shot on an LED stage. With cluster rendering, you'll no longer need to be limited by technology, as virtual production sets can handle workloads with increasing pixel counts and complexity. You'll also be able to use backup servers to run content so no frames are dropped if one node crashes; or even display projected images onto buildings, walls, ceilings and more at any scale. It's the first step toward the Minority Report-style holograms of the future. As studios continue to ex- plore the vast potential of cluster rendering, our team at Disguise will continue to iterate on the user-facing APIs that allow cus- tomers to write their own integra- tions within 3D engines outside of Unreal Engine. At the moment, that includes integrations with Notch, TouchDesigner and Unity. That means no matter what realtime engine you're using, your virtual productions will look better, be more reliable and support your ideas — at any scale. Disguise's platform combines produc- tion software with media server hard- ware, allowing creatives to imagine, create and deliver spectacular visual experiences. CLUSTER RENDERING PROMISES HUGE GAINS BY ADDY GHANI VP OF VIRTUAL PRODUCTION DISGUISE WWW.DISGUISE.ONE W VIRTUAL PRODUCTION BY JOE SILL FOUNDER/DIRECTOR IMPOSSIBLE OBJECTS WWW.IMPOSSIBLE-OBJECTS.CO hen we founded Impossible Objects, it was with realtime production as our foundation. We recog- nized that realtime game engines were changing the conventions of film, as well as digital content production, extending and accelerating creative opportunities in whole new ways. Realtime technology powers LED volumes and virtual productions are bringing creative stakeholders clos- er together, enabling unprecedented creative collaboration. On-set, all of the various performers and craftspeople nec- essary to realize a project can respond to actual visuals, versus green-screen backgrounds, to make more informed creative choices and give more inspired performances. It stands to reason that if everyone is seeing the same thing at the same time, the whole process becomes smoother. Add in the ability to share results with client stakeholders at each stage of the process, and virtual production allows you to move projects from concept into post production more quickly, efficiently and transparently. The core principles of production remain the same with realtime and virtual production, and filmmakers are empow- ered to achieve their vision on-set in- stead of relying on fixing it in post. While it's true that, for the time being, LED stages are still best used for creative- ly-ambitious projects with otherworldly environments, I believe that is changing rapidly — especially in the advertising realm. While tools like Unreal Engine are driving the adoption of realtime, other AI-driven creative tools, like Dall-E and Midjourney are also making waves for artists working in production, animation and VFX. While these tools aren't necessarily driving realtime workflows, they are remarkably fast solutions for creative exploration and inspiration. And though using AI-generated art is some- thing I would not choose to create a final image in my projects, I have used it to great effect to build out reference imag- ery for an idea within seconds. In that re- gard, I anticipate that AI art will continue to help industry creators get to the point more quickly by speeding up their ability to communicate more abstract ideas. Having the freedom to experiment with tools that unlock so many new cre- ative opportunities in content production is an absolute game-changer. This new way of producing is more iterative and engaging. It makes digital assets and environments much more malleable, and it makes the transition from broadcast to game to film to immersive experiences seamless. As we move into 2023, the creative possibilities truly are endless. Based in New York City, Impossible Objects is a virtual production company, designed to help define the future of film and entertainment by embracing next-generation realtime processes, such as game engines and LED volume stages, to streamline content production. THE FUTURE IS REALTIME W