Platige Image Reveals Cyberpunk Movie Powered by Unreal Engine
Platige Image has announced Defect, the first production based on Virtual Production - the studio's proprietary technology using the Unreal Engine.
- Platige Image published Defect, the first production based on Virtual Production technology, powered by Unreal Engine;
- The short video presents a young woman who, in unexplained circumstances, was moved to a cyberpunk city of the future;
- The Polish animation studio intends to further develop its technology and use it to produce games and films.
Platige Image is an studio that has become known to gamers as a creator of high-quality game trailers, including The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, The Medium and Total War: Warhammer III. However, the team is not stopping. At the beginning of this year they announced that they will start creating their own games and TV series. Today we can take a look at their first work using Virtual Production, the studio's own technology.
The work itself is quite small, as Defect lasts less than four and a half minutes. The presented material tells the story of a girl who, in unexplained circumstances, is moved to a neon-iluminated city of the future. The whole thing looks really good and is full of cyberpunk vibes. If, after Ghostrunner and Cyberpunk 2077, you are not fed up with similar themes, we encourage you to check out the team's new creation.
The role of the heroine is played by Polish actress Erika Karkuszewska (actually Erika Bielska). Armin Kurasz is responsible for the script and direction. The creator seems to be delighted with the Virtual Production technology developed by Platige Image, using the Unreal Engine known from many games. Kurasz compares the effects it offers to those seen in Disney's The Mandalorian series.
“Virtual production gives us unlimited possibilities in creating a film world. (...) Today, in a studio in Warsaw, we can create a film in a short time that previously would have required long shooting trips or months of post-production. Now we can create unreal cities, travel in time, to distant parts of the world or the universe."
Almost all of the shots you see were created using a Virtual Set, i.e. a LED wall that displays real-time rendered backgrounds. These are perfectly synchronized with the sensor-equipped camera, which, when used together, maintains perspective and depth. The process was therefore akin to creating a production using greenscreen. Interestingly, the initial artwork shortened the time needed for shooting and post-production and enabled the filmmakers to make changes directly on set. More details were provided by Michal Dabal, the cinematographer responsible for camerawork in Defect:
“Working in virtual scenery means unlimited freedom when it comes to the integration of lighting, colors, time of day, or moving buildings into the frame. The possibilities are virtually endless, so it is very important to set specific parameters as if we were working in an “existing” location."
Karol Zbikowski, director of the studio, does not hide his enthusiasm either. He described the Virtual Production technology as a result of many years of Platige Image's work and a natural path of its development.
"Virtual Set is one of the pillars of our strategy for the next five years. Thanks to our international network, which we have built over the years, we hope to realize many interesting projects."
