China Film Studio Offers Virtual Production with Previzion
China Film Virtual Stage (CFVS), said to be the first virtual production stage in China, has opened a new 800 sq meter green screen stage at China Film Studio to offer Chinese clients advanced virtual set shooting services for both movie and TV episodic shows.
Using the latest Previzion systems from Lightcraft Technology, CFVS provides real-time pre-visualization of final shots to its clients. It was announced Wednesday, March 27 by Lightcraft Technology.
A film or television crew shooting on green-screen, for the first time in China, will be able to see both the live action and CGI elements in context, during the shooting.
CFVS is a part of China Film Studio, the flagship facility of the China Film Co., Ltd., and is located in Huairou District, Beijing.
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The Digital Production branch of the studio, previously known as Hualong Digital Film Production Company, has been offering production services since its establishment in 2000.
“Previzion works well with our shooting and post production workflow. The quality of the real-time composite is also considerably better. And more importantly, using Previzion helps the filming crew work more closely with the VFX team,” said Wang Jianxiong, CTO of China Film Studio.
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According to the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America), China had become in 2012 the world’s 2nd largest movie market in terms of box office revenue. About half that revenue was from domestic movies, 80% of which were shot and/or processed at China Film Studio, according to Lightcraft Technology.
“Shooting in the newly opened CFVS, directors and DOP’s will be able to see the visual effects using their own eyes, not using their imaginations. They will find it very helpful,” says Wang Jianxiong.
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“China Film Studio has a very aggressive agenda to bring Chinese film up to the best international standards. For sophisticated visual effects segments that rely heavily on green screen technology, Previzion is the perfect tool for China Film Studio. They can use the full advantage of our precision camera tracking, sophisticated rendering, and high quality keying, all in real time,” said Eliot Mack, Lightcraft’s founder and system architect.
China Film Studio (“The State Digital Production Base of China Film Group”) is a subsidiary of China Film Co., Ltd. Covering an area of 130 acres, China Film Studio is the home to 16 sound stages, ranging in size from 800 sq. meters to 5000 sq. meters.
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In addition to sound stages, backlots, equipment rental, sound post production, visual effects, and post production are also provided on campus. The studio was established in 2005 with the aim of the advancement of digital production technologies in filmmaking in China, together with the production of more high quality movies. It is now claimed to be the most advanced facility in China.
Lightcraft Technology was founded in 2004 by Eliot Mack to bridge the technology and on-set production worlds. A graduate of MIT, Eliot has worked at Walt Disney Imagineering and iRobot.
Photo courtesy: Lightcraft Technology
