Creating Opportunity

Although the virtually created environments weren’t used in the final piece, the project was a significant technical achievement and a fantastic learning experience. Collaborating with the production services studio, we successfully integrated real-time scenes into their system without any issues. My role involved creating all the environments in Unreal Engine, which required a completely different approach compared to traditional DCC software. Unreal Engine essentially reverses the VFX pipeline! instead of applying effects in post-production, everything is built during pre-production. On shoot day, what you capture through the camera is nearly the final piece, requiring only minor colour correction at the end. This approach offers benefits like realistic light reflections, eliminating green screen colour bleed, and giving directors a clear vision of the final result in real-time.

A key part of my work was ensuring the scenes performed at a high frame rate, as any drops in performance directly affected the projection onto the LED screens. I also had the chance to experiment with Niagara particle systems during some R&D, which was fascinating to explore. While these elements weren’t approved for the final cut, the experience was incredibly rewarding. I’m grateful to have worked with such a talented production team and studio, and the project deepened my understanding of real-time workflows and virtual production.