Case study
- Project:
- Promotional Production for Synthetic Training
- Client:
- Thales Training & Simulation
- Location:
- Crawley, Sussex
The Brief
Thales Services, part of the international Thales Group, is one of world's leading manufacturers of military and civil aircraft simulators ranging from fixed and full motion mission simulators and systems trainers, to the provision of complete, networked synthetic environments for large-scale live military mission simulation.
Thales' simulators offer the latest in high fidelity 3D synthetic environments. However being able to promote these qualities in the 2D world of external communications presented some considerable challenges.
The Solution
Impact Image has worked extensively in simulator environments for a range of other clients and we knew that one vital quality of simulator training is that, for the pilots, it's an immersive experience.
This immersiveness proved to be the key to meeting Thales' communications' objectives and led us quickly to deciding that our live action 3D capability would offer exactly this experience.
We were however faced with some immediate technical challenges the main one being that we needed to produce a 3D camera rig small enough to be useable within the tight confines of a Hawk chase aircraft cockpit. Our technical team and experienced MoD approved cameraman developed a system comprising two Sony PC9 digital camcorders mounted on a specially engineered bracket.
The next part of the plan required the availability of a Tornado GR4 for air-to-air filming. We proposed to the Royal Air Force and Thales that if the RAF could make a GR4 and a Hawk trainer (as the chase aircraft) available then the RAF would be able to use footage shot in 2D for their own publicity purposes. An opportunity that was immediately and favourably received as there was very little high quality GR4 air to air footage in the RAF's library.
Result
The 3D camera system proved highly functional and delivered superb quality images. We successfully achieved the aerial filming objectives and in combination with 3D live action of ground action delivered a programme with which Thales were highly delighted.