A consortium led by Dundee’s Abertay University has been selected by the government to host one of four new labs set to appear across the UK.

The labs will specialise in the future of virtual production: a new range of real-time content production techniques using computer-generated imagery (CGI), augmented reality (AR), and motion capture to create virtual experiences, sets, and worlds.

For instance, instead of adding visual effects and CGI in post-production, virtual production allows filmmakers and the like to create large-scale, digitally-generated environments using LED panels. Performers can then interact with these environments in real-time as a faster, less expensive alternative to green screens.

The R&D lab, which will be located at the Water’s Edge Studios, is set to combine expertise from Abertay University, the University of Edinburgh, Scots game development studio 4J Studios, tech incubator CodeBase, and Interface, the organisation connecting businesses with academia.

Professor Gregor White, who is the Dean of the School of Design and Informatics at Abertay University, said: “Virtual production is one of the most exciting emerging applications of media technologies in the world right now. There is enormous potential for virtual film production to be the next major tech success story for the UK.

“Abertay’s academic expertise in the technologies used to create the real-time media, alongside University of Edinburgh’s expertise in generative AI is second to none.

“Our intention will be to use our research expertise to drive innovation, and the entrepreneurial and investment experience of the broader partnership to deliver economic growth and jobs of the future for the UK creative industries sector.”

In addition to the Dundee-based lab, two other regional hubs will be launched in Yorkshire and Belfast, led by the University of York and Ulster University respectively.

Furthermore, a national lab will be led by Royal Holloway, University of London, alongside core partners such as BT, Pinewood Studios, and Abertay University.

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The UK-wide network of labs is part of more than £223 million in government spending on the creative industries — which digital technology often plays a major role in — since 2021.

Last month, at the Enders Media and Telecoms 2023 & Beyond Conference, Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer spoke on her aim to maximise potential within the creative industries, citing an ambition to grow the sector by £50 billion by 2030 and to build a pipeline of talent into it.

As part of the £223 million in funding for the creative industries, Dundee’s video games research unit, InGAME — which is also led by Abertay University, in partnership with the Universities of Dundee and St. Andrews — received support through the Arts and Humanities Research Council’s Creative Industries Clusters Programme.