Unreal Engine: The Future of TV & Film at L.A. Castle Studios

No one is asking the questions “Why Unreal?” or “Why virtual?” because hit shows and films like Disney’s The Mandalorian and L.A. Castle Studios’ productions have demonstrated the power and flexibility of Unreal and virtual set production for filming any and all types of content. 

The question being asked now is “How can production companies utilize the Unreal Engine and virtual sets in a way that is safe, easy, and at the cutting-edge of technology?” The answer is to that question is: Shoot at L.A. Castle Studios. 

Production companies, directors, and filmmakers choose L.A. Castle Studios for producing content because L.A. Castle Studios makes a production’s vision come to life, in the safest, greenest way possible, with crews as small as you choose, no trees being cut down for sets, and no emissions from travel and construction. Our Unreal Engine setup is unparalleled. 

Here’s why. 

L.A. Castle Studios is multi-camera, meaning your team gets every angle simultaneously. These multiple cameras are able to move freely, without restriction, as they would on any “practical” location or million dollar standing set -- without spending the million dollars. Multi-camera for scripted scenes and film means faster productions and it’s easier on actors, as they need to do the same scene only once to get every angle needed. For talk and news style shows, multi-camera is the only setup that makes sense. Some locations, like restaurants, markets, and extremely specific locations can utilize our patented method of virtual set creation that allows for scenes, shot on our stage, to be indistinguishable from shooting on-location. One of our cameras is on a camera crane, so your team can walk away with stunning sweeping crane shots.

L.A. Castle Studios is multi-feed. Our multiple feeds give your post production team an incredible amount of creative control over the set and scene. We typically provide each of the following feeds for all three cameras. 

1. Live composite. This feed shows the talent, environment (set), and any practical set pieces all together. The L.A. Castle Studios live composite is the top in its class and it’s what most of our clients use when creating their final product for the viewer. 

2. Background only. This feed is the moving background, tracked with each camera, minus talent and any practical set elements. This feed is important because it allows for the post production team to make modifications or corrections to the set without affecting talent or other elements. 

3. Foreground only. This feed captures the production without the live-composited set and is important for making color and other adjustments to talent and/or other elements without affecting the set or scene overall. 

4. Matte and tracking data. This feed displays as white for composited elements and black for non-composited elements. Post-production teams will use this feed to correct any of the rare imperfections that might pop up in the scene. 

L.A. Castle Studios has your production covered with twelve total feeds of data, that’s four feeds from each camera. You’ve never had control over any production like this, even in the real world. 

L.A. Castle Studios uses the latest in cutting-edge software to power these productions. If you’ve seen it and are excited about it, we’re either ahead already or will be first to apply the latest so our clients can utilize the best as soon as possible. 

L.A. Castle Studios uses the latest in cutting-edge hardware. Though the studio has existed for over a decade, we’re always working to upgrade our hardware to make sure that our clients’ productions look better than what can be seen anywhere else. Our most recent hardware upgrade has been to our graphics cards and lighting package. Our new state-of-the-art graphics cards enable us to shoot with RTX ray tracing capabilities, allowing for digital sets that look even more real than ever before. We’ve upgraded our available lighting to the newest and best in LED RGBW technology. When you enter L.A. Castle Studios, you’re entering what’s by square foot, the best lit studio in Hollywood.

L.A. Castle Studios includes everything you’re likely to need to shoot. This includes cameras, audio, lighting, sets, full-technical integration capability for outside or specialized equipment, set furniture for talk-show style productions, news desks, and much, much more.

Shadows -- for total reality. Shadows are vitally important for Unreal productions. L.A. Castle Studios has been able to master the “art of the shadow” to create scenes that look identical to being filmed on-location. The shadows that we create are not digital shadows but easy-to-work-with actual shadows of talent and props. A best practice is to adjust our lighting to match the angle of the virtual light in the Unreal scene for total reality.

At L.A. Castle Studios, you’re not limited to using Unreal for the background alone. Instead you’re set free to utilize Unreal for total scene immersion. This means that your team can mix as many practical elements into the scene as they want. For instance if you’re filming a restaurant scene, you may want to use a real table where talent can dine. If you’re filming a bedroom scene, you may want to include a real bed and dresser. If you’re filming an outdoor scene, you may want to include a real lamp post for your talent to lean against. The combinations are endless and each includes live compositing and total immersion. 

L.A. Castle Studios is the experienced virtual production facility. We’ve been making virtual content since 2008 and are proud to have been involved in the virtual space for so long and the opportunities that we’ve had to connect with great people, work on great projects, and to be at the forefront of the future of Hollywood. 

Major networks and filmmakers trust L.A. Castle Studios for their Unreal productions. We’re glad to work with networks, production companies, and filmmakers with projects of all sizes.

Production at L.A. Castle Studios is safe. Because Unreal is easy for us to work with, we’re able to work with smaller crews than you ever thought possible. With the size of our facility and stage, and the size of crews needed, your cast and crew can remain socially distanced and safe while creating the same (or better!) high quality content that you and your viewers expect.

The L.A. Castle Studios dressing rooms, green rooms, common areas, and stage are luxurious and comfortable. We keep things clean, orderly, and sanitized. The LED video wall in our production area provides a movie-theater sized live feed to the L.A. Castle Studios Stage. For Unreal productions, you’ll see the live composite and any other feed you’d like to see, from multiple angles. There’s nothing else like it. 

Filming with the Unreal Engine offers limitless possibilities for your production. Imagine sets anywhere you can dream -- in any configuration you can imagine -- without construction costs or travel time -- for your production. 

Dreams come true at L.A. Castle Studios. We’re redefining the science of cinema -- and are proud to be at the cutting edge of virtual sets and using the Unreal Engine.