In an eye-opening showcase yesterday, InEd Studios, in collaboration with the cutting-edge tech company Zero Density, highlighted the future of higher education at the Virtual Production open house event. With Zero Density鈥檚 industry-leading technology, USF faculty can transform their courses into immersive experiences with interactive virtual environments, realistic 3D graphics, and captivating animations.
About 100 people joined the event, both in-person and online through a livestream.
Using Zero Density鈥檚 technology and virtual production tools, the InEd Studios team showcased how they work with faculty and learning designers to increase student engagement and improve the learning experience for students through high-quality, custom digital content.
As the first American university to partner with Zero Density, USF鈥檚 InEd Studios team says Zero Density technology has enabled it to create learning content that pushes the bar forward in online education.
鈥淚ncorporating Zero Density technology was our best way into virtual production quickly,鈥� said Jared Brown, director of InEd Studios. 鈥淚t expands our collaboration opportunities across campus and gives us a much wider breadth of what we can do with faculty.鈥�
It has also helped the team streamline operations and create a more efficient workflow. Within a few hours, they can record instructors in several different environments, which would be extremely challenging outside the studio.
InEd鈥檚 first project using Zero Density technology was USF鈥檚 Foundations of Name, Image, and Likeness course, which teaches participants how to successfully use social media, build personal brands, and gain an understanding of what athletes need to know about NIL deals.
As a media-focused course, this was a great entry point for the team to get an introduction to using this technology to create engaging virtual spaces.
鈥淥ne thing this system allows you to do is work with a smaller team if you need to,鈥� said Brown. 鈥淵ou can change environments on the fly and change cues quickly.鈥�
Throughout a four-day-long shoot with a crew of 10 people, they used Zero Density鈥檚 dynamic materials on screen meshes, preprogrammed virtual cameras, form builders, action timelines, and rundowns, said John Cundy, virtual production supervisor of InEd Studios.
鈥淲hat鈥檚 awesome about Zero Density is, when you make these environments, build them, and run down, you can go back in any time, hit run, and you鈥檝e got a full turnkey solution,鈥� Cundy said.
The collaboration between InEd Studios and Zero Density represents a significant leap forward in educational technology. By harnessing the potential of virtual production platforms, they are redefining the standards for online learning and enhancing students' experiences in the digital realm.