Entertainment technology company Anna Valley has provided the tech for the mixed reality “window on the world” feature in ITV’s Rugby World Cup 2019 studio.
The studio, based in Maidstone, combines live-action, augmented reality and mixed reality. The mixed reality “window on the world” element of the set created by Anna Valley uses high-resolution LED screens to show an artistic impression of a Japanese cityscape that responds to on-set camera movements in the same way that an actual panorama view through a physical window would.
The effect is achieved by feeding positional data from Red Spy trackers fixed to the live studio cameras into a disguise server running Notch software. The software then renders the cityscape content from the perspective of the cameras and feeds this back to the LED display “window” in real-time. Anna Valley is also providing in-set lighting, studio floor projection and static versions of the “window on the world” concept at ITV’s two satellite studios in Japan.
“ITV is the exclusive broadcasting rights holder for the Rugby World Cup 2019 and millions of fans will be tuning into our coverage of the tournament, both on the pitch and from the studio,” said ITV Sport technical director, Roger Pearce. “The studio concept and design play a critical part in our RWC 2019 delivery and, as trusted ITV technical partners, Anna Valley was a natural choice to help us deliver our mixed reality concept.”
