Extended Reality vs Virtual Production – Distinguishing Future Technologies

A Comprehensive Look at XR and Virtual Production – Key Things to Know

In the last few decades, we have witnessed how the world has taken broad steps toward revolutionary changes and digital transformations. And, it will take just a second before we realize that everything around us is not the same anymore. Communication, jobs, movie production, education, and even basic fields will be shaped into different patterns and forms. The central role of all these changes belongs to the concepts of extended reality and extended reality production along with VR and AR.

XR production is the umbrella term that unifies all interactions and environments related to virtual and real elements. Meanwhile, virtual reality production combines traditional technologies with digital innovations that influence real-time game engines.

However, even though extended reality and XR virtual production typically encompass mixed reality (MR), AR (augmented reality), and VR (virtual reality), they have more specific roles when used in broadcast and virtual production XR. In this article, we will look at these concepts' ins and outs and explore how and where they differ. So, get comfortable, and let's begin our journey.

What is XR Virtual Production – A Brief Overview

So, what exactly is XR production? In simple words, extended reality is a collective expression that refers to immersive technologies such as augmented reality, virtual reality, and mixed reality. To understand what all of them convey and how they work, let's discuss each of these components separately.

• Virtual Reality: As you can easily guess from the name, virtual reality is a not-real, computer-generated world that brings people into a virtual environment through virtual production studio-xr headsets. Once wearing it, you will transport yourself into a real-like world and be immersed in a simulated environment. Today, modern XR production technologies and tools push all boundaries and make virtual environments look and behave more naturally than our ordinary world. They also support extra senses like smell, sound, and touch. Virtual reality can serve for various purposes. For example, XR production studio designers and artists can review building projects before construction to finalize all details. Players can become fully immersed in a video game and interact with other gamers in real-time.

• Mixed Reality: The next term related to extended reality is mixed reality. It is a seamless integration of rendered graphics and the real world in which people can interact directly with the physical and digital worlds. Within mixed reality, virtual and real objects blend and are even introduced together in one display. Typically, you can find two types of mixed reality. The first one mixes virtual objects into the real world. This can be seen with XR production technology. The best example can be when a person sees the real environment via cameras in a VR headset with virtual objects blended into the view. The second type is the opposite – it mixes real-world objects into a virtual world. For instance, a camera view of a virtual reality participant blended into the XR production environment.

• Augmented Reality: The last component of XR production is AR. In contrast to VR, Augmented reality is all about a rendered image on the surface of the real world. You can see AR graphics through tablets, smartphones, and other devices, which makes the whole experience more interactive. Pokémon GO is a popular mobile game that perfectly showcases augmented reality. Precisely, it shows computer-rendered monsters on sidewalks and lawns as gamers roam their neighborhoods. For example, the XR stage can greatly improve the direction navigation process. Instead of using a 2D map, a windshield can give directions over your view of the road and direct the driver with the help of special simulated arrows.

In a nutshell, all XR production can extend reality by either simulating or adding to the real world with the help of digital materials. Also, based on the data provided by Fortune Business Insights, the market size of extended reality is estimated to increase from $131.4 billion in 2023 to $1,134 billion by 2030, with a CAGR of 36%.

What is XR Production – A Brief Overview

We have already discussed the concept of XR production technology, so it's time to dive deeper into the essence of virtual reality production, which particularly took off during COVID-19.

Virtual production XR is a special filmmaking method that unifies physical and virtual to create movies. But how does it work? You may be familiar with the green screen – a tool normally used in the shot background to allow editors to easily change or add extra visual effects in the post-production phase. So, in the case of XR video production, a massive LED screen replaces the green screen. LED screens have high resolution, making any images or videos super realistic.

For example, let's suppose the giant LED screen displays an image of a forest. Thus, when a camera captures footage of this screen, it seems like an actual forest was captured on video. Simply put, when cameras combine with a precision motion tracking system, they can move in and around the virtual world, with real and figural elements locked and merged, giving the combined illusion

The most notable thing about XR virtual production is that editors no longer need to add visual effects only in post-production. They can work on all changes and additions throughout pre-production in real-time. So, instead of “fix it in the post”, now we have “fix it in pre”.

VP covers several stages. These include:

• Pre-production (previs) – This XR stage involves concept art, storyboards, animations, and other aspects that help plan the movie.
• Technical aspects of previs (techs) – A technical artist handles such aspects as shot locations, camera placements, CGI shots, and green screen measurements.
• Post-production (postvis) – In this XR stage, temporary visual effects will be merged with live-action scenes as a placeholder for the final cut.

Also, you will need a special game engine like the Unreal Engine to create a film in extended reality and access virtual reality production technologies. As for LED Volumes, filmmakers and XR production studio specialists can consider XR Stage, known as one of the largest suppliers in the field.

Core Benefits of XR Virtual Production

Virtual Production XR is not only about connecting virtually or creating hyper-realistic films with advanced XR stage technologies and LED volumes. It has many other benefits enabling studios to innovate more and bring high-quality results even in pre-visualization. Below, we have highlighted some key advantages, let's look.

• Cost and Time Savings: XR production movies are a great time-saving and cost-cutting option for most studios. First of all, now people have the opportunity to create virtual versions of proposed sets. This leads to less rework and cleaner takes, greatly eliminating additional expenses and travel time. Moreover, in the case of green screens, there is a need for chroma key compositing and color spill, which naturally increases the time spent in post-production. However, when using LED screens, they are optional, which means the time needed for XR production will be significantly reduced.
• Idea Iteration and Real-Time Edits: The XR production environment empowers creatives and art teams to develop their vision earlier. In particular, it allows for exploration by visualizing environments and shots before any actors or artists enter the set. Iterations on their vision help movie companies to bring people together and integrate the art department to create something unique and out of the world. In addition, with immersive production, hosts, producers, and editors can adapt their performances or make alterations live on set in real time without waiting for the post-production phase.
• Environment Friendly: Next, there is the aspect of eco-friendliness. As we mentioned above, reducing the number of places and locations needed for XR production with the help of LED volumes can help to cut expenses. This same point, however, also has some great environmental benefits. For example, in the case of a pandemic like it was during COVID-19, the use of an XR production environment helps to keep all cast members and crew safe and sound. They can easily operate remotely and plan everything online without real meetings.

Apart from these, extended reality production also opens doors for endless creativity. For example, VFX artists can easily remove the sun or change the glow of the sunset during the filming. If the building on the horizon is smaller than planned, they can manipulate it to look bigger, and so on.

History and Development

Even though the concept of XR production started to take revs not long ago, it is a familiar idea. Some aspects and elements of the history of extended reality production trace back to traditional rear screen projection, primarily used in the movie industry from 1930 to 1960. The rear screen projection worked the following way – an actor stands in front of a screen while the projector behind it casts a reversed background picture. This method enabled film directors to shoot scenes of people driving while being on a static set. However, this XR production also had a big disadvantage. Since everything on the set had to be static, the camera couldn't move so as not to ruin the illusion. This, in return, hugely restricted the capabilities of rear screen projection.

In recent times, XR Virtual Production has started to be used in various ways and has integrated diverse technological innovations. For example, in 2019, when filming the live-action remake of The Lion King, Jon Favreau used multiple components of Virtual Production XR. He and his team would wear virtual reality headsets to transport to the virtual world. This enabled them to plan camera angles and the overall content better, as they could see the animated environments in front of them.

James Cameron also used this for Avatar in 2009. Through a screen showing the animated space, he could watch this simultaneously as actors performing live in real-time in front of him. As such, he got a full overview of how all the details and scenes would look in the post.

And nowadays, almost every leading XR production company has a special previz team that plans all the scenes and shots for expensive projects like His Dark Materials or Game of Thrones.

To Sum Up

In the last few years, a wave of new tools and ideas in the extended reality field has increasingly changed the story-making process across film and entertainment industries. The appearance of XR production movies, VR-driven games, and movies mixing reality and virtual environments are only a part of all innovations.

Regarding the future of extended reality production and XR, experts suggest that with new improvements and hybrid events in this industry, the adoption of XR video production across various sectors will reach massive heights. For example, integrating more comfortable and smaller devices combined with connectivity and developments in software apps will massively contribute to the adoption.

Moreover, using XR production in movie creation will expand possibilities for teams in entertainment and media and save them tons of time and funds on post-production. For that reason, these concepts and XR stage technologies have the potential to stay way too long in the future.