Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1518753
VIRTUAL PRODUCTION www.postmagazine.com 24 POST MAR/APR 2024 DIGIKORE LAUNCHES VIRTUAL PRODUCTION MARKETPLACE MUMBAI, INDIA — Digikore Studios Limited (https://digikorevfx.com) recently launched a cloud-based Metaverse marketplace of virtual produc- tion sets. The visual effects studio, which has contributed to productions that include Thor: Love and Thunder; Black Panther: Wakanda Forever; Deadpool; Stranger Things; and Game of Thrones, is looking to provide small- to medium-budget filmmakers with high-end content that can be used in LED volumes. The software as a service-based marketplace is designed to provide affordable access to virtual sets, allowing productions to rent assets at a fraction of the cost of creating custom virtual production sets. The compa- ny currently has an online marketplace (https://vpsets.com/signin) of 250 virtual production sets that can be used for films, television, commercials and photography. They are available on a pay-per-use model via the cloud and cost $1,000 per day. RESOLUTION STUDIOS RELIES ON PLANAR DISPLAYS CHICAGO — Resolution Productions Group owns and operates Resolution Studios (www.resolutionstudios.com) in Chicago's Near West Side, an 86,000-square-foot production complex featuring four stages. Approximately 70 percent of the studio's business centers on TV commercial work, with the rest dedicated to feature films and episodic projects. Resolution Studios' approach to virtual production is to create customized LED video-wall backdrops according to the specific requirements of each proj- ect. To support this flexibility, the studio uses 400 Planar Venue Pro VX Series (www.planar.com) indoor LED video wall displays with a 1.9mm pixel pitch. Todd Freese, senior VP/CTO with Resolution Productions Group, says the studio's philosophy for operating a virtual production studio is that LED vol- ume layouts should be designed on a shoot-by-shoot basis. "We are very adamant that a VP studio should not have permanently in- stalled LED," Freese states. Planar's Venue Pro VX Series of indoor LED video-wall displays feature the properties needed for creating in-camera effects and extended reality, along with the mechanical features that allow the studio to create temporary appli- cations or a fix installation. The high-performing scan and high refresh rates of Planar Venue Pro VX Series displays reduce in-camera artifacts, while high brightness and wide frame rate compatibility enable slow-motion filming and multiple ICVFX camera frustums. Magnetic points are used for briefly hold- ing LED displays in place, allowing a single installer to secure the cabinet and finalize cabling. When fully assembled, the studio's complete supply of Planar Venue Pro VX Series LED displays forms a curved, 80-foot-wide by 14-foot- high LED video wall. However, it's not uncommon for the LED video wall to be set up at 60-feet-wide by 20-feet-tall, or broken up into multiple formations depending on the production's needs. MIAMI U. OPENS XR STAGE OXFORD, OH — Miami University (atmiamioh.edu) recently debuted a new extended reality (XR) stage at its newly-constructed Richard M. McVey Data Science Building. The XR stage will be used to educate students in realtime workflows. Meptik (www.meptik.com) spearheaded the design and installation of the stage, which is based on technology from Disguise (www.disguise.one). Within Miami University's College of Creative Arts, the Emerging Technology in Business and Design undergraduate and graduate program students will now be able to explore the complexities of designing visuals for LED stages. They will also be able to learn how to manage LED stage technical integrations. Courses will cover a wide range of fields, including conventional VFX and an- imation, interactive installations, projection mapping, virtual production, digital set design, technical integration and extended reality applications in broadcast. The curriculum aims to provide students with foundational expertise to inte- grate into a community of creative technologists serving various sectors within the entertainment industry.