Modern film and television production increasingly depends on digital environments — LED volume stages, virtual location doubles, real-time Unreal Engine backgrounds, and photorealistic CGI extensions. All of it starts with accurate spatial data. We capture your locations with professional laser scanning, then our 3D modeling team rebuilds them to your specifications in Unreal Engine and 3ds Max.
What We Do for Film & TV Production
We work with location managers, production designers, VFX supervisors, and virtual production coordinators at every stage of the pipeline:
- Location documentation — Complete interior and exterior scans of practical locations before, during, or after a shoot. Permanent record of exactly how the space looked.
- Virtual location doubles — Scan a real Chicago location and we'll rebuild it as a photorealistic Unreal Engine environment your VFX team can composite or your LED volume can display.
- LED volume stage prep — Accurate geometry for environment builds displayed on LED volume panels. Correct perspective, correct scale, no parallax errors.
- Set extension and CGI integration — Scan the practical set; hand off geometry to VFX for seamless digital extension.
- Production design reference — Detailed point cloud and BIM model for set construction, art department planning, and camera blocking.
Our Virtual Production Pipeline
Most scanning firms stop at data delivery. We go further — our in-house modeling team takes scan data all the way to finished Unreal Engine environments:
- Field scan — FARO Focus scanners capture the location at ±2mm accuracy. Typical location: 1–2 days on-site.
- Point cloud processing — Registered, cleaned point cloud delivered in E57, RCP, or LAS as needed by your pipeline.
- 3ds Max modeling — Our modeling team builds clean, game-ready geometry from the point cloud reference. Optimized poly count, proper UV unwrapping, material IDs ready for texturing.
- Unreal Engine build — Environment imported into Unreal Engine, lit, and textured to your specifications. Delivered as a packaged UE project ready for your virtual production team.
- Iteration — We work to your brief. Need a night version? A different time period? A partially demolished set? We handle the revisions.
Why Laser-Scanned Environments Work Better
Traditional virtual production environments are built by hand from photographs and reference notes. They look close, but they're not accurate. Laser-scanned environments are geometrically correct: every ceiling height, every wall angle, every structural column is exactly where it is in reality. That accuracy matters for:
- Camera matching — Correct geometry means correct perspective. VFX camera tracking against a scanned environment produces clean, natural composites.
- LED volume calibration — A geometrically accurate environment eliminates parallax errors and edge artifacts on LED panels.
- Continuity — When the practical and digital locations match exactly, editors and VFX supervisors have far fewer continuity issues to solve in post.
- Future flexibility — The scan exists permanently. Return to a demolished location virtually. Revisit a set years later. Repurpose the environment for marketing, training, or archival use.
Chicago Locations We've Scanned
Chicago has an extraordinary range of production-worthy locations: historic theaters, Art Deco lobbies, industrial lofts, lakefront parks, transit stations, and world-class architecture. We know this city and can mobilize quickly to any location within the metro area. We also work with Cinespace Chicago Film Studios and are familiar with the stage infrastructure and production workflows in use there.
Who We Work With
- Feature film and episodic TV productions based in Chicago
- Virtual production studios building LED volume content
- VFX houses requiring accurate geometry reference and environment builds
- Game studios needing real-world Chicago location scans
- Advertising and commercial production with location documentation needs
- Architects and production designers planning set builds
Common Questions
Film & Virtual Production FAQ
How long does it take to scan a location?
Most interior locations can be fully scanned in 1–2 days. Large exterior areas or complex multi-story buildings may take longer. We coordinate with your location team to minimize production disruption and can work nights or weekends if needed.
What do you deliver for a virtual production project?
A standard virtual production package includes: registered point cloud in E57 and RCP, clean 3ds Max geometry file, and a packaged Unreal Engine project with basic lighting and materials. Additional texturing, advanced lighting, or specific UE plugins are scoped per project.
What version of Unreal Engine do you deliver in?
We work in Unreal Engine 5 by default and can deliver for UE4 on request. We're familiar with Lumen, Nanite, and the virtual production toolset including nDisplay configuration for LED volumes.
Can you scan locations that are no longer accessible?
If a location was previously scanned, yes. If not, we obviously need access. For high-value productions, scanning a location early in development gives you a permanent digital asset even if the practical location is later torn down, modified, or unavailable for reshoots.
Do you work outside Chicago?
Our home base is Chicago, but we travel for the right project. Contact us with your location and timeline and we'll let you know if we can make it work.