MASTERCLASSES
A series of five specialist sessions running January to May 2026, designed to expand your understanding of contemporary world-building practices.
Industry-leading creators share insights into the technologies, workflows and creative thinking behind cutting-edge virtual production and spatial environments.
UPCOMING MASTERCLASS
THE LIVING WALL
Playing with the Sublime in Virtual Production
MASTERCLASS 5
THURSDAY 28 MAY, 2026 - 12:30 -14:00 GMT +1 | Zoom
What does it look like when a virtual production team decides the LED wall could be more than a backdrop?
In most VP workflows, the volume is a backdrop - technically convincing, spatially coherent, designed to disappear. On Italian TV Drama Series M il Figlio del Secolo / Mussolini: Son of the Century, the Sky/Peacock series directed by Joe Wright, the LED wall became something else entirely. Working with cinematographer Séamus McGarvey, VFX Supervisor Stefano Leoni pushed the wall into stranger, more expressive territory - using it as an active aesthetic instrument, not a neutral screen.
In this 90-minute masterclass, Stefano & Nicolo will share a detailed case study of that production: from their first creative conversations with Joe Wright through to the specific techniques and visual solutions that gave the project its distinctive register.
WHAT YOU'LL LEARN
Creative development:
Collaboration with Director Joe Wright, the beginning of the creative process, and the initial study of the environments.
Environment development:
The specific techniques applied and the creative solutions developed for the project's environments.
LED Wall as a narrative tool:
The aesthetic solutions the VFX team devised to utilise the LED wall not just as a screen, but as a powerful narrative instrument with a distinct visual style.
Gaussian Splatting for world capture:
Use of 3DGS for world-building and digital twinning.
VFX and Virtual Production integration:
Blending VFX and VP to align with Cinematographer Seamus McGarvey’s aesthetic and narrative style.
WORK IN FOCUS
PAST MASTERCLASSES
The Infinite Backlot
AI Tools for Worldbuilding
MASTERCLASS 4
THURSDAY 30 APRIL, 2026 - 12:30 -14:00 | Zoom
What if your backlot was unlimited - any location, any world, any visual language - built in hours, not weeks?
In this 90-minute masterclass, two pioneering practitioners share how they're reshaping the way screen worlds are designed, built, and shot using AI-powered tools. Real workflows, real results.
WHAT YOU'LL LEARN
Studio1
- Why AI works best as a responsive creative system - and how your direction shapes the result
- How to work with the grain of the model: understanding each tool's strengths and using outputs as feedback
- A repeatable prompt-to-image-to-edit-to-video workflow using Studio1's Workflow Canvas
- Which model to reach for and when: Gemini, OpenAI, Kling, SeeDance, and LTX
- How to refine and deliver: upscaling, timeline editing, and Studio1's Smart Clip feature for live shot editing that updates directly in the cut
Cuebric
- How the 2D-to-2.75D pipeline works: from generated image to layered, depth-ready virtual background
- How to segment environments into layers and add parallax depth for use on any 3D platform
- Why foreground physical elements are what anchor a synthetic world to a live set
- Real studio test studies and stage-ready examples across space, western, and event environments.
OUR SPEAKERS
ED TRACY
Creative Director, AIMS / Studio1 AI
Ed Tracy is a BAFTA-winning, Emmy-nominated writer, filmmaker, producer, and animator. As Creative Director at AIMS Team, he is helping to build Studio1, a platform designed to bring AI tools into one collaborative creative workflow.
BARIS YILMAZ
Prompt Engineer @ Cuebric
Baris Yilmaz is a multidisciplinary artist, filmmaker, and researcher specialising in Generative AI. With a background that spans cybersecurity and creative copywriting, Baris transitioned into the AI space in 2020, focusing on the evolution of image and video synthesis. He is the author of one of the earliest artstyle prompt guides and has played a key role in developing AI-powered matte paintings and environment workflows with Cuebric. Currently serving as an independent creator and musician, Baris focuses on building seamless pipelines supporting generative ai and cinematic storytelling.
Live Unreal Engine
Environment Building for the Volume
MASTERCLASS 3
THURSDAY 26 MARCH, 2026 - 12:30 -14:00 | Zoom
In this live demonstration, Chris and Louise will take you inside the real-time environment building process as it happens for a professional LED volume stage. Working in Unreal Engine, they will build and adapt a virtual production scene in front of you - showing not just the what, but the why behind the decisions that make or break a volume shoot.
Chris brings deep experience across major HETV productions and feature films, walking through the key technical considerations practitioners need to understand: how lighting is set up and controlled for on-set interaction, how scenes are optimised for real-time performance without sacrificing visual quality, and how rendering and blending approaches are chosen to serve the camera.
Louise brings a complementary perspective, bridging traditional art department practice with cutting-edge real-time workflows. Drawing on her expertise in Unreal Engine, Maya, and Rhino 3D, she will speak to the design and creative dimension of virtual environment building - how worlds are crafted to serve directors and designers, and what it takes to translate a creative vision into a volume-ready scene.
Alongside the live build, you'll see working examples of environments, giving you a clear sense of the quality and complexity achievable in professional VP pipelines. Whether you're approaching VP as a director, producer, DP, production designer, or technical artist, this session will give you a grounded introduction to what it takes to build and run environments for the volume.
WHAT YOU'LL LEARN
- A practical introduction to real-time environment building for Virtual Production
- Insight into lighting, optimisation, and rendering workflows
- Familiarity with the blending techniques used in professional volume shoots
- A clearer picture of how technical and creative decisions intersect in world-building
OUR SPEAKERS
Chris Bouchard (Virtual Production Supervisor)
Chris Bouchard is a leading Virtual Production Supervisor in the UK, specialising in LED volume operations and real-time visualisation covering Unreal Engine and advanced 2D Plates Workflows. He has on-set experience covering many major HETV shows and Films including HiJack, Barbie, Antman & the Wasp Quantumania & has been part of the technology teams on The Mandalorian & The Batman. With a VFX technology background, he began his career at the renowned VFX house Framestore and has contributed to workflows for major studios including Technicolor, Industrial Light & Magic, and Lucasfilm.
As a filmmaker and director, he gained international recognition for directing the independent Lord of the Rings fan film, The Hunt for Gollum (2009), which was produced on a micro-budget and has since been viewed by over 13 million people on YouTube. His feature-length directorial debut was the crime comedy Hackney's Finest (2014). In 2018, he co-directed a live-action reimagining of The Little Mermaid (2018), which was released on Netflix and starred Shirley MacLaine.
Lousie Coomber (Virtual Art Director & Unreal Artist | Production Design | Virtual Production Specialist)
A Virtual Art Director with a unique skillset spanning traditional techniques and real-time workflows, Louise specialises in creating real-time virtual environments for virtual production and immersive storytelling. She works closely with designers and directors, making expert use of tools such as Unreal Engine, Maya, and Rhino 3D to build worlds that blur the lines between fiction and reality.
With extensive experience in creative and technical virtual production pipelines, she seamlessly bridges the gap between virtual and traditional art departments. Whether it be a visually stunning real-time environment for a VP shoot, comprehensive visualisation of a set, virtual scouting, or on-set operation, she offers a distinctive combination of skills that can elevate any production.
Beyond her artistic endeavours, she is invested in developing tools for Virtual Production that enhance collaboration among filmmakers, with a particular focus on designers. Drawing from her experience in the traditional art department, she brings a unique perspective on workflows and tools that can significantly benefit filmmakers.
MULTI-CAMERA ARRAYS FOR ENVIRONMENT CAPTURE - THE PIPELINE INTO VIRTUAL PRODUCTION
From Capture to Volume :
MASTERCLASS 2
THURSDAY 26 FEB, 2026 - 1230-2 PM
CAPTURE TECHNOLOGY & TECHNIQUES
- Multi-camera systems for vehicles, trains, boats, and aerial capture
- Building and deploying bespoke camera rigs
- Advanced stabilisation delivering camera-ready plates / footage
- Motion data recording for enhanced realism on set
- Best workflows for VFX integration
- Early-stage planning to on-location shooting
- Colour management workflows
- Collaboration across departments
VIRTUAL PRODUCTION APPLICATIONS
- LED volume setup: camera positioning, screen heights, and vehicle considerations
- Working with plate data & different pipelines
- Flexible approaches: permanent stages, pop-up volumes, and hybrid solutions
- Real-time preview and immediate feedback on set
- Creative vs technical considerations
- Scaling solutions from intimate scenes to large-scale productions
- Working with different budgets
OUR SPEAKERS
Living Environments
THE ART & TECH OF VOLUME WORLD-BUILDING
MASTERCLASS 1:
THURSDAY 29 JANUARY, 12:30am - 14:00pm GMT
Innovation lead Simon Legrand's credits span from Star Wars and Avatar at Industrial Light & Magic to pioneering music videos like the Chemical Brothers' "Live again" - which made history as the first production to live-switch between several virtual environments during a continuous take.
With over 20 years in the industry, Legrand brings a unique perspective on how environment building has evolved from months-long post-production pipelines to on-set, real-time world creation.
In this 90-minute deep-dive, you'll discover:
- Real WORKFLOWS from Untold Studios' volume productions
- How seven bespoke VIRTUAL WORLDS were designed and deployed live on the ARRI Stage for the Chemical Brother’s ‘Live Again’ music video
- The TECHNICAL & CREATIVE INNOVATIONS that made virtual production possible
- When VP ENVIRONMENT BUILDING serves the story better than location or green screen
- Practical insights from short-form to long-form
Whether you're a filmmaker, designer, or technologist curious about the future of storytelling, this is your chance to learn from someone at the absolute cutting edge.
