Simulated Travel & Virtual Car Processing
Professional Automotive Backplate Filming & Virtual Driving Environments
High-quality driving plates captured for film, television and commercial production.
Manchester’s Purpose-Built LED Volume
for Automotive Production
Recode XR Studio’s LED volume is engineered specifically for simulated travel, delivering photorealistic automotive environments without the
complexity and risk of location shoots.
Our Manchester facility features 100 sq/m LED volume with ceiling panels, DMX Controlled lighting and hydraulic vehicle skates for precise positioning.
This purpose-built configuration enables seamless automotive production from compact vehicles to large vans.
By keeping vehicles static and projecting dynamic backgrounds, we create authentic motion illusion with realistic reflections and interactive lighting. Actors perform within visible environments rather than imagining green screen voids, resulting in natural, believable performances that elevate your production.
We also source premium simulated travel footage or capture bespoke plates tailored to your exact production requirements.
Our Studio Advantage
100 sq/m LED Volume
The studio features a 10m x 4m curved wall with a 150-degree curve, 18 sq/m ceiling LED panels for realistic overhead reflections, 8 sq/m configurable mobile panels, Absen 2.5mm pixel pitch for exceptional image quality, and Brompton Tessera SX40 processing.
Advanced Lighting
Advanced lighting features pixel-mapped RGBWW technology with DMX control for real-time adjustments, delivering interactive lighting that responds to on-screen environments and creates authentic reflections on vehicle surfaces
Hydraulic Wheel Skates
Hydraulic vehicle wheel skates provide precise vehicle positioning and rotation with 360-degree movement capability, enabling seamless repositioning for multiple camera angles while accommodating vehicles up to 3 tons and offering fine control for exact framing requirements.
Real-Time Technology
Real-time technology includes Ncam camera tracking for 3D environments, Unreal Engine workflows, Nvidia workstations with RTX 6000 ADA, Red Raptor X camera, and frame remapping capability.
Technical Flexibility
Real-time adjustments to backgrounds, lighting and weather. Frame Remapping capability for post-production flexibility.
All Included With Stage Rental
No hidden costs—essential automotive production capabilities included with hire.
What Is Simulated Travel?
Simulated travel—also known as car processing or automotive processing—captures driving perspectives and surrounding environments for controlled studio playback.
These sequences display on:
- LED volume stages
- Green screen composites
- Rear projection systems
- Real-time virtual production environments
Vehicles film in controlled conditions while maintaining realistic motion, lighting transitions and environmental continuity.
Ideal Applications
Simulated travel suits:
- Automotive commercials
- Film & TV scenes
- Branded vehicle campaigns
- Product demonstrations
- Studio-based driving interviews
- Controlled stunt sequences
- Music videos featuring vehicle
This approach delivers road realism without location disruption, weather delays or travel constraints.
Virtual Production Integration
Our simulated travel content integrates with:
- LED volume workflows
- Driving Plates playback
- IBL (Image based Lighting)
- Rear Projection
- Hybrid physical and digital production
- Green screen compositing
- Post-production VFX pipelines
Combined with virtual production, simulated travel creates photorealistic automotive scenes with complete control over lighting, weather, time of day and environmental conditions—all adjustable in real-time.
WHY USE SIMULATED TRAVEL?
Controlled Filming Environment
Capture vehicles in camera safely in studio conditions with consistent lighting and environmental control.
Enhanced Performance
Actors respond naturally to visible environments. Dynamic reflections and interactive lighting create authentic on-camera results.
Production Efficiency
Film multiple scenarios, angles and lighting conditions without relocating. Reduced location costs, eliminated road closures, minimised crew travel and weather-independent scheduling.
Technical Flexibility
Real-time adjustments to backgrounds, lighting and weather. Frame Remapping capability for post-production flexibility.
Purpose-Built for Automotive
Our LED volume configuration with ceiling coverage, hydraulic wheel skates and image based lighting rig is specifically designed for virtual car process production.
Custom Simulated
Travel Capture
We develop tailored simulated travel solutions including:
- Urban routes (Day/night)
- Motorway driving
- Scenic environments
- Residential streets
- Night-time sequences
- Weather-specific scenarios (rain, fog, snow)
- Specific geographic locations
- Period-appropriate environments
Content prepared for LED display, compositing or real-time integration depending on your workflow requirements. We can match existing footage or create entirely new environments.
Recent Productions
Our studio has delivered simulated travel for:
- Sky Brassic (custom LED configuration for large vehicle)
- ITV Protection
- ITV After the Flood
- ITV Coronation Street (third collaboration)
- Multiple brand commercial automotive projects
Custom size LED Volumes can be purpose built for any type of vehicle. Either in one of the large stages at the Space Studios complex or at any location in the UK.
The Recode XR Difference
Unlike general virtual production studios, we’ve configured our facility specifically for automotive work. Our ceiling LED coverage, hydraulic wheel skates and image based lighting rig deliver results that standard LED walls cannot achieve.
We understand automotive production requirements—from achieving perfect reflections on vehicle surfaces to managing complex lighting scenarios. Our team has delivered simulated travel for major broadcasters and commercial clients, bringing technical expertise and creative problem-solving to every project.
