VP Forum records successful London launch
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Introducing the day, Brian Macauto, VP industry development director for Absen said: “We are increasingly seeing the impact of LED in filmmaking, and we are pleased to be supporting the virtual production trend with this event. We have put together an event today which helps to explain the latest innovative tech and to highlight the possibilities - we see this vibrant market as full of potential and we want to continue to collaborate with exciting partners in this industry to keep pushing the boundaries of what we can achieve together.”
The team created a film theatre environment in the VP Studio, using the Absen PL2.5 Pro V10 as the backdrop. The Virtual Production Forum began with a VP, where are we now? talk and went on to include sessions covering VP build, workflows, and pipelines, as well as panel discussions that saw industry professionals share their experiences of working in VP, and amongst other insights, offer advice on how to upskill to take advantage of the new opportunities opening up thanks to the explosion of interest in VP.
Film industry technologist and Absen’s newly appointed VP consultant, Tom Witkowski, said: “In every way, the Virtual Production Forum was a success. We had a full house of visitors from the UK and internationally, and the sessions proved to be ‘standing room only’ popular. I’d like to thank our event partners, Absen, Procam Take 2 and Garden Studios for having the foresight in organising this much-needed event, as well as, of course, their equipment and space which was put to such good use. I’m looking forward to the next VP Forum already.”
Rich Phillips, CTO, Garden Studios commented “It was our privilege to host and participate in the VP Forum, inspiring to hear from the excellent panel of leading industry professionals, and a pleasure to meet the many attendees who share our passion for the future of Virtual Production as part of the film-making tool set. We thank our partners for their support and look forward to future collaborations with them as this technology continues to evolve and grow in relevance not just to Garden Studios but the whole industry.”
Saul Gittens, head of training and development at Procam Take 2 adds: “It was an honour to be able to contribute to such a remarkable event, bringing together so many leading minds from across the full VP spectrum. Having worked as a DOP on many virtual productions through Procam Take 2 and Garden Studios, it was extremely rewarding to be able to share my experiences with a room full of enthusiastic attendees.”
Writer/director Tom Clarkson played host for the day and provided entertaining and informative introductions to each topic drawn from his own experience in film, television and theatre as well more recently, VP. He also put his directorial skills to use on the mini space opera Going Home which was scripted and produced by the team at Garden Studios especially for the event.
The Virtual Production Forum saw the European debut of Absen’s new flagship VP solution, the PR 2.5. Built of carbon composite with an achievable weight as low as 22kg per m², the PR 2.5 is a lightweight large panel and is initially available in 2.5mm pixel pitch with 3.9 and 5.2 planned.
The Technology Zone, an area created by the team at PSCo, featured the Absen PL 1.9 PRO v10 alongside ARRI cameras and Brompton processors recreating VP production facilities on a smaller scale.
Jess Golding, Absen European brand & marketing director sums up the day: “We had an amazing event which was extremely well-attended. The agenda for the day was packed with interesting sessions and the feedback we have received has been extraordinary. We are already planning next year’s edition and we look forward to this being an annual event for the virtual production community.”
