What is Studio Ulster?
Studio Ulster is a unique £72m investment in a large-scale Virtual Production studio complex in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Introduction
Developed by Ulster University, in partnership with the Belfast Harbour Commission and supported by Northern Ireland Screen, Studio Ulster is a unique £72m investment in a large-scale Virtual Production studio complex in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
The complex includes world-class commercial Virtual Production stages, fully supported by an integrated Research, Development and Innovation Centre of Excellence in real-time and virtual production. Virtual Production has been identified as driving a revolution in production pipelines across converging sectors with application in film, broadcast, commercial, animation, games, immersive and VFX.
Studio Ulster works with globally important production companies and university research and development teams to plug the skills gap in virtual production and develop highly skilled graduates. In addition, it gives local creative companies access to hardware and software that will enhance their product and allow them to scale up and grow into global players in the industry.
Focus & Vision
Studio Ulster is destined to be a ‘Tier 1’ Centre of Excellence in Research, Development and Innovation in Virtual Production. With a rapidly developing suite of technologies and methodologies for screen content production, it provides a nexus for key areas which are already established strengths in the region, including film, broadcast, animation, games and immersive technology, such as virtual, augmented and mixed reality.
Benefits of a Tier 1 Centre of Excellence
- Further reinforces Northern Ireland’s reputation for excellence in the screen industries;
- Supports Northern Ireland Screen and Invest NI in attracting Direct Foreign Investment and growth to the indigenous sectoral base;
- Supports the wider application of Virtual Production technologies and methodologies across a range of sectors;
- Brings industry and leading academic research capabilities together under one roof, delivering a unique blend of facilities to drive collaboration in Research and Development on an unprecedented scale;
- Delivers grant-funded Research and Development and facilitates production-driven R&D activities, working directly with industry to improve efficiencies in production, processes, and expanding commercialisation opportunities;
- Embeds Epic’s Unreal Engine technology into the curricula, aligning programmes with the skills pipeline;
- Provides support at further/higher education level, schools and other partners to ensure that opportunities offered cascade to young people classified as low skilled and NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training).
