Mo-Sys, a world leader in precision camera tracking solutions for virtual studios and augmented reality, has brought virtual studio production within reach of everyone with StarTracker Studio, the world's first pre-assembled production package.
Mo-Sys, a world leader in precision camera tracking solutions for virtual studios and augmented reality, has brought virtual studio production within reach of everyone with StarTracker Studio, the world’s first pre-assembled production package. The system is scalable to any size production, and can support 4K Ultra HD.
Critical for virtual studio and augmented reality production is to track the position of each camera in three-dimensional space across all six axes of movement. StarTracker from Mo-Sys is proven as the most precise and reliable camera tracking package, using dots on the studio ceiling (“stars”) which are placed at random and tracked to plot camera positions with extraordinary accuracy.
To make virtual studio production accessible by all, StarTracker Studio bundles the tracking with cameras and mounts and a high-performance virtual graphics system based on the latest version of the Unreal Engine and the Ultimatte keyer. Mo-Sys’s unique plug-in interfaces directly between the camera tracking and the Unreal Engine, for extreme precision with virtually no latency.
All the hardware – including Lenovo PCs with Titan RTX GPUs – is mounted in a rolling rack cabinet and pre-wired, and all the software is loaded and configured. All the user has to do is design their unique virtual environment, power up the StarTracker Studio rack and start shooting.
“StarTracker Studio enables any organisation to create premium virtual studio content easily and simply, at an attractive price point,” said Michael Geissler, CEO of Mo-Sys. “We have made it simple by bringing the best equipment together, from respected vendors like Blackmagic Design/Ultimatte, Lenovo, Canon and Cartoni.
“That hardware works with the incredible virtual graphics power from the Unreal Engine, tied with perfect precision to real objects thanks to Mo-Sys tracking,” he continued. “It gives the user access to top end effects like hyper-realistic reflections, soft shadows to emulate real-world lighting, continual depth of field processing to emulate lens performance, and occlusion handling, so talent can walk around virtual objects. In other words, top-end, uncompromised virtual production, in a simple one-stop package.”
The standard package is supplied with three Blackmagic Ursa Mini 4.6K cameras with Canon 18 – 80 zoom lenses, and paired with Mo-Sys StarTracker tracking units. The kit also includes a camera jib, a rolling tripod and a camera rail set. An 8 channel Atem production switcher provides the live output for broadcast or streaming, and three video recorders are included for separate programme, key and graphics recording. Smart switching means that only one Ultimatte keyer is required for the system, rather than the more conventional one keyer per camera.
The package also includes the Mo-Sys Beam In kit to bring remote guests into the virtual studio. Every element can be used in HD or 4K Ultra HD. Three radio microphones and an eight-channel audio mixer are also part of the solution.
The system is scalable up to the largest size of virtual production. Rack kits are available to support either eight or 16 cameras. The complete system is pre-configured by Mo-Sys before shipping, and Mo-Sys will also provide all support, including training in technical and creative aspects where required.
“We have all had to find new and inventive ways to keep up production over the last few months,” said Geissler. “StarTracker Studio is ideal for the new normal, especially including our Beam In kit for remote contributions. This is a powerful production platform aimed at anyone who wants to create virtual studio and augmented reality content, without the time and investment setting it up themselves. Hang a green screen and, with StarTracker Studio, you are good to go.”
Additional information will be available through a Webinar on 23 July 2020 at 10am BST and 6pm BST.
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About Mo-Sys Engineering
Mo-Sys is an innovative designer and manufacturer of advanced camera robotics and virtual technologies for the high end film and broadcast industry. The Mo-Sys product range spans remote heads & motion control, broadcast robotics, mechanical and optical camera tracking for AR and VR, and on-set visualization. Further information is available at www.mo-sys.com