Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) has recently opened a stage for virtual production powered by disguise. This new studio is part of an 10.9-acre expansion project of the university’s Savannah Film Studios. The objective of the expansion is to convert Savannah on the most comprehensive university film studio of the country. A second xR stage is under construction at SCAD Atlanta and scheduled to open in Fall 2022. The company MEPTIK is collaborating with the college to create this mentioned expansion.

“With its ability to empower real-time control while shooting, xR technology is enabling visual storytelling capabilities we have not seen before,” says disguise Vice President of Sales for the Americas, Caroline Niedzwiecki.  “At disguise we strive to provide the most innovative technology that empowers the wildest creative vision possible. SCAD is at the top of the pyramid when it comes to education in the media and entertainment industries. We are so proud that the disguise workflow will power the xR stage for the Savannah Film Studios and train the next generation of virtual production professionals for a bright future.”

The xR stage has an LED video wall display from DeNyse Digital measuring approximately 40 x 20 x 17 feet with a 1.5mm pixel pitch. The environments displayed on the screen are created using Unreal Engine, and the stage features stYpe RedSpy tracking RED’s Komodo 6K camera, outfitted with Zeiss lenses. The disguise xR workflow powers the delivery of real-time graphics from Unreal Engine with four vx 4 and two rx II media servers.

“Being a SCAD-founded, SCAD-driven company, we are honoured to have been chosen to collaborate with SCAD on this project,” says MEPTIK Co-Founder and Creative Director, Sarah Linebaugh. “We have been working with the extended reality workflow for years, and building the xR stage for the Savannah Film Studios meant that we could play a part in developing the next generation of xR specialists. We look forward to seeing what future SCAD alumni will be able to create using this technology.”