Matt Reeves’ currently filming “The Batman” will use a variation of the StageCraft virtual production technique for select scenes in the film’s upcoming production.
Most famously used extensively in Lucasfilm’s “The Mandalorian” series, StageCraft allows for real-time in-camera visual effects and ambient lighting via LED walls and ceiling surrounding a set – effectively a modern and much more practical use of rear projection. They are driven by the Unreal game engine and automatically adjusts around the camera’s parallax.
With “The Batman,” the production design team has pre-built practical sets in the UK and an LED wall was built around these sets to enable use of virtual production in those specific scenes.
The film’s director of photography is Greig Fraser who shot “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” the upcoming “Dune,” and won an Emmy for his work on three episodes of “The Mandalorian” which makes him quite familiar with the techniques required.
Industrial Light & Magic chief creative officer Rob Bredow revealed the news during a session at this year’s virtual VIEW visual effects and animation conference.
ILM’s StageCraft LED set is at Manhattan Beach Studios which has been used for both seasons of “The Mandalorian”. Other StageCraft virtual production stages are being built at Fox Studios in Sydney and Pinewood Studios in London.
