Recently, GUM turned to 4Wall Entertainment to provide lighting and video equipment for its new Virtual Production (VP) facility. The high-spec virtual environment includes ROE Visual Black Pearl 2 LED video panels, which are driven by Brompton 4K Tessera SX40 processors.
“GUM is a long-term customer of 4Wall’s, and we have been supplying it with equipment for years,” said 4Wall’s Account Executive – Video Production, Wayne Romanowski. “With Virtual Production tipped to become a standard for how major motion pictures will be shot going forward, we were honoured when the GUM team contacted us about supporting them in bringing this cutting-edge technology to their clients.”
4Wall provided 333 ROE Visual Black Pearl BP2 (2.8MM) LED video panels to create a curved wall 40′ wide, 15′ tall and 20′ deep. The company also supplied 51 Full and eight Half ROE Visual Carbon CB8 (8.3MM) LED video panels for an approximately 25′ wide x 20′ deep ceiling for lighting and reflections.
The entire set-up is driven by three Brompton 4K Tessera SX40 LED processors and five XD 10G data distribution units, out of which “two SX40s along with four XD units are used for the LED wall and the rest are deployed for the ceiling,” adds 4Wall’s Account Executive – Sales, John Velez.
With GUM Studio’s new virtual facility offering a perfect platform for productions to operate during the pandemic, and to continue when things regain some level of normality, the team couldn’t be more excited to be part of this project and to supply GUM with reliable, top-of-the-range equipment like Brompton’s Tessera processing system.
“We are aware of Brompton’s 24/7 technical service but, fortunately, we haven’t had to reach out to them for support throughout this project,” said Velez. “That is partially due to the quality of the product and the completeness of its documentation. Looking back at some of the previous installations, their tech support has always been prompt and efficient when I needed the team’s help.
As with any VP environment, state-of-the-art technology can make or break a production. The combination of Tessera SX40 processor and ROE Visual BP2 LED panels proved a winning recipe for the 4Wall team.
“This particular processor / tile combination has a long legacy,” explained Romanowski. “There are so many ‘known knowns’ about both products, that troubleshooting or adapting new technology features are almost routine matters. Also, we know how the tiles will respond to the processor settings. It’s a very predictable and tried and tested workflow and is frustration free. Throughout this project, we have seen Brompton roll out many new features to the processor’s software that have implemented well and will expand upon the ease of use to let us achieve even greater and more demanding visual results.”
“With VP helping break down silos of production, we need reliable partners that can support us in bringing this revolutionary technology to life,” concluded Velez. “Brompton Technology is perfectly positioned to do that, with its powerful Tessera processor playing an important role in the virtual production workflow and enabling us to serve our customers with a much more immersive way of content creation. GUM Studios’ Virtual Production Studio is a perfect example of that.”
