EL SEGUNDO, CA — NantStudios (www.nantstudios.com), a sound stage and provider of virtual production services, has launch a new virtual production ecosystem and innovation campus in El Segundo. The seven-acre campus features a 24,000-square-foot sound stage housing an advanced, independent, in-camera visual effects (ICVFX) volume and suite of services that are designed to work with productions of all types. With the creation of the innovation campus, Epic Games has chosen to co-locate its newest Los Angeles Lab at NantStudios.
“We are thrilled to be working with Epic Games, using Unreal Engine as the virtual production platform to bring the next generation of film and television production to Los Angeles,” says Michele B. Chan Soon-Shiong, president of NantStudios. “Building on the success of our studio in Culver City, NantStudios’ ICVFX sound stage in El Segundo marries the engineering behind realtime video games with the art of filmmaking in a versatile studio environment.”
NantStudios’ ICVFX sound stage was designed in collaboration with Lux Machina. The stage now makes it possbile for NantStudios to conceptualize, iterate and execute final visual effects shots in-camera, concurrently with live-action capture.
NantStudios’ services team is led by director of virtual production, Gary Marshall, and director of studio operations and business development, Keaton Heinrichs. Together, they have decades of experience, performing critical roles on such productions as The Lord of the Rings, Avatar, Gravity, The Lion King and The Mandalorian.
The ICVFX sound stage features LED panels and processors integrated into a novel, modular-designed volume video system. The volume can be configured for realtime camera-tracked Unreal Engine environments, pre-rendered plate playback or a hybrid approach. Live composite feeds and volume spy-cams can be streamed to any remote location on NantStudios’ accelerated fiber network infrastructure.
“We are excited to expand our Los Angeles presence at the NantStudios campus, a hub for the virtual production community and an incredible new stage-for-hire, which has been in high demand,” says Marc Petit, VP, GM, Unreal Engine, Epic Games. “This is a space where the Unreal Engine team will not only accelerate testing of new virtual production workflows and cutting-edge developments, but also get to see them go into production on real world projects. NantStudios is a nimble, flexible and resourceful company and much like Epic, shares a commitment to innovation across a diverse range of industries."