Dimension Studio sees more directors turn to virtual production
August 27, 2024
Dimension Studio has been at the forefront of virtual production for years, notching up a series of credits on high-profile film and TV projects including Time Bandits; Avatar: The Last Airbender; and many others.
Recently, they joined forces with DNEG to set up DNEG 360—a new division of the creative powerhouse that provides a range of services including visualization, virtual production, content creation, and development.
We caught up with Dimension to find out how virtual production has evolved since the early days—and what might be on the cards for the future.
Recently, they joined forces with DNEG to set up DNEG 360—a new division of the creative powerhouse that provides a range of services including visualization, virtual production, content creation, and development.
We caught up with Dimension to find out how virtual production has evolved since the early days—and what might be on the cards for the future.
While film production visualization has been around for a while, historically it was the preserve of pioneering directors like James Cameron and Peter Jackson. This has now changed. “The technology has matured now to the level where it’s pretty much transparent to any filmmaker that comes in to use it,” says John Alladice, Virtual Production and Visualization Supervisor at Dimension Studio.
That’s important, Neil Graham explains, because everyone from a traditional filmmaking discipline can bring something to virtual production. “Their existing filmmaking knowledge is instrumental in making virtual production work,” says the executive producer at Dimension Studio and DNEG360.
That’s important, Neil Graham explains, because everyone from a traditional filmmaking discipline can bring something to virtual production. “Their existing filmmaking knowledge is instrumental in making virtual production work,” says the executive producer at Dimension Studio and DNEG360.
In the four years since Dimension launched its own virtual production offering, the cutting-edge filmmaking technique has become integrated with the traditional production workflow.
“We work directly with directors and client-side VFX supervisors who are becoming ever more comfortable with working with Unreal Engine, recognize its capabilities, and often approach projects with a virtual production mindset from the off,” says Graham.
A case in point is Those About to Die—Peacock’s epic 10-part sword-and-sandal television series the studio worked on alongside DNEG under the banner of DNEG 360.
The series saw DNEG 360 use modern virtual production filmmaking techniques alongside live action and traditional VFX to recreate Vespasian’s Rome—providing a host of advantages beyond those already afforded by CG.
“We work directly with directors and client-side VFX supervisors who are becoming ever more comfortable with working with Unreal Engine, recognize its capabilities, and often approach projects with a virtual production mindset from the off,” says Graham.
A case in point is Those About to Die—Peacock’s epic 10-part sword-and-sandal television series the studio worked on alongside DNEG under the banner of DNEG 360.
The series saw DNEG 360 use modern virtual production filmmaking techniques alongside live action and traditional VFX to recreate Vespasian’s Rome—providing a host of advantages beyond those already afforded by CG.
To recreate Rome on an LED volume and capture final scenes in camera, the team would be leaning on a production pipeline built around Unreal Engine. “It’s the core target for things like the environments we build, the camera we’re simulating, the motion capture we’re capturing,” says Ed Thomas, Head of Real-time at Dimension Studio. “All of these live events that are happening that a director is directing in real time, all of those performances get streamed live, directly into Unreal Engine.”
On Those About to Die, the team would first need to bring a detailed model of ancient Rome into Unreal Engine. They could then use this virtual replica for everything from previsualization to shooting the final pixels on an LED volume.
Flying around the virtual environment, Director Roland Emmerich and VFX Supervisor Pete Travers could explore different areas of the city that might serve as suitable locations for scenes and sequences in the story.
Locations chosen for specific beats were then projected onto an LED wall comprising ten huge screens that were synced together to display a 16K image.
For Emmerich, who has directed some of the biggest films ever made, including Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow, 2012, and Moonfall, it would be his first working on an LED volume.
On Those About to Die, the team would first need to bring a detailed model of ancient Rome into Unreal Engine. They could then use this virtual replica for everything from previsualization to shooting the final pixels on an LED volume.
Flying around the virtual environment, Director Roland Emmerich and VFX Supervisor Pete Travers could explore different areas of the city that might serve as suitable locations for scenes and sequences in the story.
Locations chosen for specific beats were then projected onto an LED wall comprising ten huge screens that were synced together to display a 16K image.
For Emmerich, who has directed some of the biggest films ever made, including Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow, 2012, and Moonfall, it would be his first working on an LED volume.
While it might look and feel like a location shoot, working on an LED volume comes with a number of advantages. Not least of these is the impact on shooting schedule.
Scenes can be reliably earmarked for each shooting day of the production, without the risk of delays that can occur when working live on location.
In filmmaking, time is money—and avoiding days lost to bad weather or substandard lighting can have a big impact on a production’s bottom line.
“What matters to the wider production team is that the scene looks consistent and won’t be impacted by rain,” explains Franklin. “The director loves to shoot at golden hour. Virtual production meant he could do this throughout the day.”
Working on an LED stage is also a boon for actors. With story locations projected in stunning 16K definition on a huge screen behind them, they’re able to deliver performances in context—rather than in front of a blank background. “It genuinely helps actors to see and react to their surroundings versus green screen,” says Franklin.
Scenes can be reliably earmarked for each shooting day of the production, without the risk of delays that can occur when working live on location.
In filmmaking, time is money—and avoiding days lost to bad weather or substandard lighting can have a big impact on a production’s bottom line.
“What matters to the wider production team is that the scene looks consistent and won’t be impacted by rain,” explains Franklin. “The director loves to shoot at golden hour. Virtual production meant he could do this throughout the day.”
Working on an LED stage is also a boon for actors. With story locations projected in stunning 16K definition on a huge screen behind them, they’re able to deliver performances in context—rather than in front of a blank background. “It genuinely helps actors to see and react to their surroundings versus green screen,” says Franklin.
Merging virtual production and traditional filmmaking
With studios increasingly waking up to the cost savings and creative possibilities afforded by virtual production, we can expect to see a broader range of film and TV adopting a real-time production approach in the future.
“It’s no longer the domain of big-budget sci-fi,” says Franklin. “The barriers are reduced and photorealism is delivering on its promise. It’s becoming an ever more accepted, cost-effective production tool.”
He credits this shift to the leaps and bounds that have been made in the core technology. “It’s testament to the increasing stability and dependability achievable in Unreal Engine, as well as improved visual fidelity and lighting,” he says. “It’s the only game engine that’s up to the job. Unreal is the most mature virtual production engine in the market.”
With studios increasingly waking up to the cost savings and creative possibilities afforded by virtual production, we can expect to see a broader range of film and TV adopting a real-time production approach in the future.
“It’s no longer the domain of big-budget sci-fi,” says Franklin. “The barriers are reduced and photorealism is delivering on its promise. It’s becoming an ever more accepted, cost-effective production tool.”
He credits this shift to the leaps and bounds that have been made in the core technology. “It’s testament to the increasing stability and dependability achievable in Unreal Engine, as well as improved visual fidelity and lighting,” he says. “It’s the only game engine that’s up to the job. Unreal is the most mature virtual production engine in the market.”
EXPLORE VIRTUAL PRODUCTION IN UNREAL ENGINE
Transform your film and TV development with Unreal Engine's virtual production features. Shoot, direct, edit, and render final pixels with the power of real-time technology.
Virtual Production
Unreal Engine 5.5 is now available
This release brings major enhancements to animation authoring, rendering, virtual production, mobile game development, and developer iteration toolsets—and much, much more.
Indies
Fab, Epic’s new unified content marketplace, launches today!
Today, Epic launches Fab, a one-stop destination where you can discover, buy, sell, and share digital assets. This new marketplace supports all types of creators with content for use across Unreal Engine, Unity 3D, UEFN and other digital content creation tools.
Film & Television
Catch up on the big news from Unreal Fest Seattle 2024
Dive into Epic Games’ announcements from Unreal Fest Seattle 2024 to find out about Unreal Engine royalty rate savings through the Epic Games Store, new features in UE 5.5, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in UEFN—and much more.