The Future of Extended Reality. Shot on MARS posted: 13/09/2020
Europe's new state-of-the-art Mixed Augmented Reality Studio offers a technology canvas' for the filmmakers, entertainers, content designers and event organisers of tomorrow
MARS Studios, Europe's most ambitious purpose-built Mixed Augmented Reality Studio, opens its doors to the global creative industries this month. On MARS, virtual 3D environments are mapped onto an LED stage, enabling performers, actors, presenters and products to be blended into a photo-real or imaginary virtual environment in real time. Created by visual pioneers Bild Studios, MARS combines state-of-the-art video game engines, camera-tracking technology, xR workflows powered by disguise and LED screens to create a versatile and immersive performance stage and studio. The benefits of the natural lighting provided by the LED and the director's ability to update any scene on the fly in real-time also help to give performers a visual reference and the means to easily orient themselves, in contrast to a traditional green screen, where visual elements are added in post-production.
MARS is the perfect environment to offer filmmakers, broadcasters, event and brand experience designers, games developers and others unparalleled access to the highest quality, state-of-the-art Extended Reality (xR), Mixed Reality (MR), Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Production studio facilities. A unique fusion of art and cutting-edge technologies, MARS provides a technology canvas' that revolutionises the way the creative industries can develop their craft.
To provide a taster of the kind of immersive art events of the future that will be shot on MARS, British art historian, BBC presenter and BAFTA nominated broadcaster, Dr James Fox worked closely with the creative team at The Experience Machine and the technical and production teams at Bild Studios. The piece, named Masterpiece: Nighthawks places James Fox within Edward Hopper's Nighthawks, his famous 1942 oil on canvas painting that portrays four people in a downtown diner late at night as viewed through the diner's window. In Masterpiece the 3D representation of Hopper's painting was created as carefully extracted 3D geometry with detailed layers of texturing added; partly handmade, partly AI-generated, that would resemble the brush strokes and fine crafting of Edward Hopper's unique painting style. Finally, the 3D scene was imported into the game engine Unreal Engine and rendered in real-time based on the position of the physical film camera on the MARS stage.
Commenting on Masterpiece , Christopher Pearson, founder and director of The Experience Machine (TEM) says: Access to high-end xR platforms such as MARS alongside advances in game engine software has opened the opportunity to craft narrative journeys from an entirely new perspective; the inside of an artwork. Considering the painted canvas as an environment that a viewer can walk into has never been more possible. Working closely with Dr James Fox we have been able to reimagine how a painting could exist as a 3-dimensional world. This process has allowed the technology to reveal insights into the painting that have never been considered before.
Our working practice focuses on the conception and creation of genuine digital and physical experiences. We approach this by merging real world phenomena with their digital counterparts, while engaging the participant within an immersive narrative journey. MARS supports this approach with the integration of real-world effects within the virtual world of Masterpiece, combining virtual and physical camera depth of field, dynamic environmental lighting and live properties controlled by the director via a mobile tablet. This unique stage allows us a more tactile connection with the scene and has given us a new perspective on directing within a virtual set.
MARS is the creation of renowned media technologists Bild Studios. Bild Studios co-founder, David Bajt explains: Over the last two decades, the Bild team has collectively worked on live experiences and high end productions for some of the world's leading artists and brands, including Beyonc , Lady Gaga, Cirque du Soleil, Dubai Expo 2020, Ralph Lauren, Ferrari, Volvo, Samsung, BMW, Ed Sheeran, Nokia, Red Hot Chilli Peppers and many more. Since then we have been working hard behind the scenes to develop the world's leading xR production technologies and know-how, working with globally renowned musicians, entertainers and presenters to break beyond the physical dimensions of the traditional film location, event venue or broadcast studio, through realising the full potential of xR .
Furthermore, the technology on MARS is ideally suited to the COVID-19 era. Visual content can be produced without the need to travel to exotic locations and our work can be carried out while maintaining the social distancing practices that have become so important in recent months, not to mention the environmental benefits of dramatically reducing the need for power which large-scale onsite productions always consume.
Creativity has a new home. On MARS.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
07/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/07/2026
New appointments to Screen Australia board 7 July 2026
The Albanese Labor Government has made new appointments to the Screen Australia board.
Dr Tania Chamber...
07/07/2026
The right team. The right time.' How The Killings at Parrish Station stuck t...
07/07/2026
Berklee College of Music Alum and Faculty Perform at Boston Public Library's...
07/07/2026
Scripps Research scientists train the immune system to make antibodies against numerous HIV strains Preclinical findings mark progress toward a long-sought vacc...
06/07/2026
Long-developed relationships and informal access, three production models, and c...
06/07/2026
The deal follows Lumine's recent acquisition of Synamedia's video-networ...
06/07/2026
This former SportsCenter producer is shaping local-team studio coverage to surro...
06/07/2026
IMS Productions and FOX Sports deployed more than 100 cameras, 32 onboard feeds,...
06/07/2026
Lumine Group Inc. has announced the completion of its acquisition of the Video Network Business from Synamedia. The business will operate as a standalone compan...
06/07/2026
NASCAR has announced a content and commercial partnership with Motorsport Network, a motorsports and automotive media platform, to distribute NASCAR original co...
06/07/2026
Versant Media Group has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Full Swing, a sports technology company, from Bruin Capital and a group of minority investor...
06/07/2026
DAZN has announced global broadcast rights to 3ICE, a professional hockey format featuring three skaters and a goalkeeper per side, with no power plays or offsi...
06/07/2026
Bundle gains 100 new synths & more
Synth Anthology 5 the largest and most feature-packed edition of UVI's hardware synth emulation bundle, bringing toge...
06/07/2026
Available now via free firmware update
MOTU have just announced that three of their popular audio interfaces now boast official Milan Certification. The 16A...
06/07/2026
Rohde & Schwarz completes Hunter Preliminary Design Review for the Integrated Co...
06/07/2026
The R&S IMAGER from Rohde & Schwarz uses millimeter wave imaging to inspect the ...
06/07/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sp...
06/07/2026
Digital Domain Appoints Industry Veteran Patrick Davenport as Executive Vice Pre...
06/07/2026
Gravity Media USA appoints Brittney Boston as Head of Business Development
Brie Clayton July 6, 2026
0 Comments
The strategic new appointment supports...
06/07/2026
Remote Editing Without Cloud Storage in Resolve
Michael Cioni July 6, 2026
0 Comments
This is a step-by-step guide that demonstrates how to setup your...
06/07/2026
Automatic Caption Translation in Adobe Premiere Pro
Colin Smith July 6, 2026
0 Comments
Here I showcase the innovative automatic caption translation f...
06/07/2026
Flavor's First Ever Managing Director Neal Cohen Retires; Longstanding Execu...
06/07/2026
How Adam Rosenwach Pivoted from Music to Medtech Without Missing a Beat What do the rehearsal room and the boardroom have in common? More than you might think...
06/07/2026
Zhongyi Optics unveils the Dreamy Zone T1 FF Cine Lens Series on Indiegogo with ...
06/07/2026
Open source AI has shown how quickly developers can innovate when models, data a...
06/07/2026
Techtel debuts insyght: making ST 2110 media discovery easy
intellisphereinsyght2026
6 July Written By Suzanne Costello
Sydney, Australia - 06 July 2026 T...
06/07/2026
Monday 6 July 2026
Sky agrees to acquire ITV Media & Entertainment, creating a ...
06/07/2026
Fresh from his World Cup heroics with Cabo Verde, Roberto Pico' Lopes will join the RT panel for Argentina v Egypt tomorrow and for the England v Norway q...
06/07/2026
Nations have long invested in domestic infrastructure to advance their economies, protect and use their data, and take advantage of technology opportunities in ...
06/07/2026
Every year, the International Conference on Machine Learning (ICML) reveals where thousands of AI researchers have decided to put their work.
This year's ...
06/07/2026
A death can be unsuspicious, but it has to be explained
What happened to Ke...
05/07/2026
We've gone to another level of integrating the graphics into the set architecture' - Zac Fields, SVP, Graphic Technology and Integration, FOX Sports...
05/07/2026
Browser-based and desktop apps available
Digital Sunset Studios have been busy working on an interesting project: a free software tool that provides compute...
04/07/2026
When Canada qualified for the FIFA World Cup 2026, OneSoccer knew this wasn'...
04/07/2026
Celebrates company's 80th anniversary
Rhodes have recently revealed that they will be producing a limited run of electric pianos in celebration of their...
04/07/2026
Blackmagic Design Cameras Empower Youth Broadcasting Program
Brie Clayton July 3, 2026
0 Comments
Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Pro and Blackmagi...
04/07/2026
iZotope Joins Boris FX
Boris Yamnitsky July 3, 2026
0 Comments
iZotope, the team behind RX and Ozone, is joining Boris FX. A letter from founder Boris...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
03/07/2026
New bundle & three Single Packs
Continuing to expand their already sizeable orchestral collection, VSL's latest release introduces three new Single Pack...
03/07/2026
Venue installs new ATC-equipped control room
LSO St Luke's, a unique music venue that also serves as the home of the London Symphony Orchestra, have rec...
03/07/2026
Caden Pearson appointed new Commissioning Editor for NITV
3 July, 2026
Media releases
National Indigenous Television (NITV) has strengthened its commitment...
03/07/2026
1 February 2023
SHARE Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email
Munich, Germany, 1st February 2023: Cinegy GmbH, the premier provider of software technology for digit...
03/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
The Future of Extended Reality. Shot on MARS posted: 13/09/2020 
