NABShow 2023 || Democratizing Onset Virtual Productions

LED Stage Architecture "How It's Built"
(Day 1 - Sunday, April 16th)

Learn about how we built this LED stage and best practices in over all planning. Biger and more expensive is not always better, learn how to create a plan for small to midsize LED stages.

Doing More with Less: Commercial Production in the Volume (Day 1 - Sunday, April 16th)

In fall of 2022, Austin's team shot ten 60-second spots for national broadcast as part of a multi-million dollar ad buy. Using a hybrid of virtual production and traditional location work allowed them to capture an immense variety within a very short timeframe. In this talk, he will show some select moments from the commercials and provide insights into how virtual production was used to elevate the production to the next level.

Perfect VAD Asset Workflow (and why nobody is doing that) - (Day 1 - April 16th)

Let’s take a look at what a VAD asset workflow would look like in the perfect world, what stops us from getting there, and how we can do better in the future.

VAD (Sunday, Day 1 - April 16th)

2.5D Content Workflows for In-Camera VFX (Day 1 - Sunday, April 16th)

An overview of the evolving intersection of traditional VFX compositing techniques and virtual production content. This talk will discuss the history and development of the relevant compositing techniques and illustrate how filmmakers, VADs, and operations teams can benefit from the efficiencies and well-established workflow behind this particular content format for ICVFX.

Underwater Virtual Production: The Making of Emancipation (Sunday, Day 1 - April 16th)

This talk will showcase the groundbreaking use of virtual production technology in the making of Emancipation, the Apple TV movie starring Will Smith. The film features an action sequence of Smith fighting a crocodile underwater, which was created using a large water tank, ICFVX workflows, and Unreal Engine real-time content. We will explore the technical and creative challenges of using virtual production technology for underwater scenes and discuss how it is changing the filmmaking landscape.

Generative AI: A View from Media Creatives (Sunday, Day 1 - April 16th)

After years of hype and false starts, AI has entered the toolbox of media creatives. And for the first time in ages, the focus is less on those who’ve built it than on those who use it. Thousands of creatives throughout our industry have already layered Generative AI into their workflow. In this session, we’ll hear from one of them, acclaimed producer, director and writer C. Craig Patterson, as well as from ETC's Yves Bergquist on how artificial intelligence is already changing the way we craft media products, and what skills are required to leverage it in full.

Future of Realtime Rendering (Monday, Day 2 - April 17th)

Questions to address: future of real-time rendering, direction of technology and key players in the industry.

Next generation DIT's Carts for OSVP (Monday, Day 2 - April 17th)

A journey of the evolution of the DIT Cart and what the next generation of OnSet Virtual Production filmmakers look for to enhance their day-to-day workflow. Dane and Arvin dive deep into the use of Wacom's Cintiq Pro Tablet line to elevate Technicians and Artists' requirements for ergonomic, tactile, color critical touch surfaces in Professional scenarios.

Closing the Virtual Production Knowledge Gap (Monday, Day 2 - April 17th)

Panel Discussion: Education and intuitive user interfaces will address the void in qualified operators. Learn what skill sets are being taught and how to acquire them. Will interfaces becoming easier to implement?

Novel Virtual Production Technologies (Monday, Day 2 - April 17th)

Panel discussion with Epic Games, Frame.io, MeshVP, Mo-Sys

Solving common problems that confront virtual production, today and tomorrow.

Education and intuitive user interfaces will address the void in qualified operators. Learn what skill sets are being taught and how to acquire them. Will interfaces becoming easier to implement?

Practical Sets in the Virtual Space (Monday, Day 2 - April 17th)

The use of foreground is a critical component to blending real and unreal environments. In this talk, Austin shares examples from past productions showing how foreground sets are combined with the background to produce larger worlds.

Advanced Color Analysis Methods for LED Walls (Day 2 - Monday, April 17th)

In January 2022, the ETC spearheaded an effort to measure detailed color information from multiple LED display manufacturers. In this talk Ritchie and Tucker will discuss how the measurements were made and what types of analysis can be done. In a year when more and more display manufacturers are providing factory calibrated displays, advanced color analysis can clarify subtle but critical performance differences for the most advanced ICVFX productions.

IBL - What next in Lighting for OSVP (Day 2 - Monday, April 17th)

SMPTE’s RIS Standardization in Virtual Production (Day 2 - Monday, April 17th)

Panel Discussion: Cassidy Pearsall moderates a panel of industry leaders about standards and challenges creatives and technicians are faced with on-set from an archaic, siloed systems approach, and then, makes the connections with SMPTE's Rapid Industry Solutions (RIS) leadership and the benefits of standardizations domestically and globally.

Pitch Perfect - Ted Lasso’s on field innovations began in a game engine! (Day 2 - Monday, April 17th)

Cinecode, the PreVis department of DigitalFilm Tree, is the muscle behind AFC Richmond’s on field soccer battles and epic scores. Meet Cinecode’s Sr. Producer, Andrea Aniceto-Chavez as she walks us through the many developments that brought Cinecode to hyper speeds and gaming efficiencies by Ted’s third season.

Intelligent Storytelling for Immersive Experiences: Leveraging AI and Virtual Production (Day 3 - Tuesday, April 18th)

An in-depth exploration of the powerful combination of virtual production and artificial intelligence for crafting immersive and engaging narratives. Discover how intelligent storytelling tools can enhance your creative process, enabling you to harness the full potential of AI to create unforgettable audience experiences. From virtual sets to real-time rendering, we'll dive into the latest techniques and best practices for incorporating AI and virtual production into your workflow. Whether you're a filmmaker, game developer, or VR enthusiast, this talk is not to be missed.

TrueLight - RGBW and LED Panels as a Lighting Source (Day 3 - Tuesday, April 18th)

Within the VP volume, much of the scene’s lighting comes from LED panels, but these are typically designed for direct view and their spectral output is very different from typical lighting sources, so skin tones in particular can look unnatural. Adding additional LED emitters to every pixel improves the result, but massively increases the complexity of per-pixel calibration and ensuring color accuracy. TrueLight brings a significant leap in color-rendering accuracy – especially noticeable on skin tones and in blending foreground elements with virtual environments.

Removable Storage Trends (Day 3 - Tuesday, April 18th)

ProGrade Digital was founded on a mission to provide the highest quality, professional grade memory cards and workflow solutions available to professional photographers and videographers. Wes Brewer, Founder and CEO, presents a brief overview of the technology trends that are emerging in 2023 that further boost the productivity and capability of professionals using removable storage in the imaging business.

Sam Nicholson and the Amazing OSVP Adventure! (Day 3 - Tuesday, April 18th)

Sam Nicholson is one of Hollywood's leading virtual production and visual effects creatives. With nearly forty years as a Visual Effects Supervisor, DP, director, and now Virtual Production Supervisor, Nicholson and his company, Stargate Studios, have combined the latest in LED technology with their proprietary "ThruView" lighting system. Overseeing both virtual production content creation and playback, Stargate has worked on countless films and TV series including Our Flag Means Death, Station 19, Your Honor, Bardo, The Lincoln Lawyer, and the upcoming Chuck Lorre sitcom, How to be a Bookie.

Gaijin Collective State of the Industry Report (Day 3 - Tuesday, April 18th)

Hear the largest collective of independent LED stage operators, talk about stories of their journey, give a state of the industry report, and pontificate on what is next in OSVP.

Virtual Production For All Scalability in the Volume (Day 3 - Tuesday, April 18th)

Noah Kadner explores the accessibility of virtual production at different scales. Learn how to maximize resources and get into the real-time revolution at any level.

Virtual Production Without Unreal Engine: Background Plates, Photogrammetry, & Image-Based Lighting (Day 3 - Tuesday, April 18th)

Learn many different Virtual Production techniques that do not require Unreal Engine. 2d video plates, 360 video plates, photogrammetry, baked lighting from Blender, all used in Real-Time using Assimilate Live FX. Also, learn about how easy it is to set up Image-Based Lighting using Quasar Science or the new Kino Flo Mimik 120!

A Look Behind the Curtain: LED Volume Operation (Day 3 - Tuesday, April 18th)

An exclusive glimpse into the cutting-edge LED volume operations and video systems that power the filmmaking process. Delving into the history of this game-changing technology, we will explore its early days and some of the pioneering deployments that shaped it into what it is today. Moreover, we will examine the evolution of these techniques and their current capabilities. Looking ahead, we will examine the future of virtual production and how we are preparing ourselves for it with new in-house software developments. Join us for an insightful discussion that will offer a deeper understanding of the technology behind modern filmmaking.