'The Batman' harnesses 'The Mandalorian' tech for epic virtual production

Robert Pattinson in 'The Batman'. Picture: Warner Bros. Pictures

Robert Pattinson in 'The Batman'. Picture: Warner Bros. Pictures

Published Oct 20, 2020

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“The Batman” will use innovative virtual production technology from “The Mandalorian” to create epic backgrounds in real time.

The upcoming DC Comics blockbuster is set to harness the live action “Star Wars” show's LED wall to boost its own filming.

As revealed by The Hollywood Reporter, Industrial Light & Magic chief creative officer Rob Brewdow has revealed the virtual production would be used for select scenes in Matt Reeves' Batman movie.

In “The Mandalorian”, the technology allowed the team to render virtual backgrounds in real time using a game engine, which allowed scenes in very different locations to be shot on the same soundstage.

This cut down on having to wait months for a post-production team to create the backgrounds after actors had shot their scenes.

ILM, “The Mandalorian” filmmaker Jon Favreau and cinematographer Greig Fraser were instrumental in using the tech, and the latter with be involved in “The Batman”, which stars Robert Pattinson as the Caped Crusader.

Earlier this year, he suggested the production could be used in "almost every film" in the future.

He explained: "I see a world where almost every film will use this technology in some way, shape or form.

"Be it from a $250 million blockbuster down to a $2 million independent movie using it for one sequence that they dry hire a studio that’s already been built and they get in there like a location.

"So I believe when the technology kicks on and gets widely adopted, when people understand what it can do, I believe it’ll be used quite a lot.”

'The Batman' - which will also star the likes of Zoe Kravitz, Paul Dano, Andy Serkis and Colin Farrell - is currently in production, and the Warner Bros. movie is expected to be released in March 2022.

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