Vū, Motion Impossible to Showcase AGITO MAGTRAX at 2022 NAB Show

Motion Impossible
(Image credit: Motion Impossible)

LAS VEGAS—The virtual studio provider Vū and Motion Impossible have announced that the U.S. launch of AGITO MAGTRAX, a brand new magnetic strip-guided system for discreet tracked applications, will take place at the 2022 NAB Show between April 23 and 27 in Las Vegas. 

During the show attendees will have the opportunity to experience the MAGTRAX system at the Vū Booth, and at several strategic events at Vū Vegas, the latest studio addition to the Vū Virtual Studio Network. 

MAGTRAX and other AGITO solutions are available through AbelCine, Motion Impossible’s exclusive North American partner for sales, training, and technical support. 

AbelCine’s booth, #C6749 in Central Hall, is located across from Vū and the Create Inspiration Zone, where the AGITO MAGTRAX will be displayed.

“Vū is thrilled to partner with Motion Impossible on the U.S. launch of AGITO MAGTRAX,” said Tim Moore, CEO of Vū. “The use of Motion Impossible’s innovative camera motion technology allows for complete control, precision and ease of use within a virtual production environment.”

As part of the MAGTRAX U.S. launch, Vū and Motion Impossible are partnering to create film production tools that blend physical and virtual elements using Motion Impossible’s advanced camera motion technology and Vū’s virtual production capabilities.

MAGTRAX enhances the existing drive-ends by enabling customers to follow a magnetic strip laid on a surface, underneath a carpet or embedded within a set. The strip can be arranged in various creative ways beyond what can be done with a regular track, including curves and the ability to move seamlessly from one strip to another. The AGITO will autonomously follow each path while freeing up the control for camera movement.

Rob Drewett, CEO of Motion Impossible, explained that “the development of MAGTRAX marks a key milestone for the operability of the AGITO and brings the dolly to a whole new level. Our R&D team has taken on board the feedback from our users to put together a revolutionary solution that will transform productions, from broadcast to live events to film.”

MAGTRAX allows the same maneuverability as free roaming, with guaranteed repeatable movement and automatic speed control concerning straight or curved tracks. Speed is automatically adjusted depending on the arc of the magnetic strip, and magnetic markers and offers collision detection and automatic e-stop. In addition, MAGTRAX offers a configurable front and rear lighting system for pre-production and production state awareness.

Vū owns and operates advanced virtual production soundstages, with studios opening in Orlando and Las Vegas, in addition to its Tampa and Nashville studios.

Vū has substantially invested in Motion Impossible’s R&D, integrating camera tracking and real-time rendering applications to create immersive virtual environments for actors to perform in geographically diverse studios in real time. Vū’s deep integration of Mo-Sys camera tracking technology, Mark Roberts Motion Control, Epic Games’ Unreal Engine, NVIDIA GPUs and other integration partners’ systems allow effectively realistic backgrounds to be generated in real-time, rendered from the point of view of the moving camera with perfect parallax.

George Winslow

George Winslow is the senior content producer for TV Tech. He has written about the television, media and technology industries for nearly 30 years for such publications as Broadcasting & Cable, Multichannel News and TV Tech. Over the years, he has edited a number of magazines, including Multichannel News International and World Screen, and moderated panels at such major industry events as NAB and MIP TV. He has published two books and dozens of encyclopedia articles on such subjects as the media, New York City history and economics.