The future of live sports broadcast is now. For Karate Combat’s KC35 at Universal Studios, the event merged the ancient art of karate with cutting-edge video production techniques, including xR, Unreal Engine VFX workflows, and set extension for next-level engagement with live audiences and at-home viewers.
Karate Combat KC35
Hybrid realities in a live audience/ live-streamed sports environment.
Karate Combat KC35 - where physical and digital meet (credit: official livestream)
For Karate Combat’s KC35 at Universal Studios, the event merged the ancient art of karate with cutting-edge video production techniques.
For one night, Universal Studios turned into a dystopian Paris in the distant future. The virtual set showcased a rough cobblestone road leading to the Eiffel Tower, the physical fighting ring placed right in the center of the road.
The virtual environment showcased a dystopian Paris in the distant future. Camera tracking made this environment come to life.
The virtual set was surrounded by physical props that provided the illusion of being on a dingy side street in Paris. The entire set seamlessly blended together the virtual and the physical to create one cohesive environment.
The virtual set was combined with physical props to create both immersive experiences in-person and remote.
The audience on set experienced a dystopian Paris almost 270 degrees throughout.
But not only the in-person audience felt like it was immersed in the environment, set extension allowed the broadcasters to extend the physical set into the virtual world using in-camera workflows.
Set extension allowed Karate Combat to offer at-home viewers to see one seamless virtual world. (credit: official livestream)
With set extension, the virtual world can be extended far beyond the physical limitations of LED walls and physical props.
At home, viewers did not see the studio’s lighting fixtures and trusses, but more so experienced a wholesome set of Parisian dystopia, bridging the best of both worlds.
At home, viewers did not see the studio’s lighting fixtures and trusses, but more so experienced a wholesome set of Parisian dystopia
The entire production showcased what is now possible for hybrid experiences, merging physical live events with high-quality, immersive remote viewing experiences.
Our team integrated the xR and Unreal Engine workflow using disguise, enabling fluid creativity to make changes on the spot and the virtual set extension that provided the perfect solution to extend the world Karate Combat had envisioned.
Our team integrated the xR workflow using disguise and Unreal Engine.
Our team stayed on-site during production, making last-minute changes on the fly and making sure of a flawless, technical execution.
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