I made an UNREAL ENGINE short film in THREE DAYS
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- čas přidán 1. 06. 2024
- I challenged myself to make an Unreal Engine 5 short film in just three days using green screen and virtual production techniques. This video charts my journey from a blank piece of paper to the finished short film. I really pushed myself on this one!
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Intro 00:00
Challenge Rules 00:10
Day 1 00:34
Day 2 02:39
Day 3 04:13
Crazy Plan 04:38
Time's Up 06:08
Final Film 06:23
Outro 07:29
It's easy to get bogged down in the details, working hard to make something perfect. This video was my attempt to get free of my high expectations and make something in a short space of time to see how good the result can be.
Since learning Unreal Engine virtual production and the ability to build worlds in real time, I have become quite obsessed with how films can be made in the engine through virtual production. The method I use in this video is centred around playing back keyed media inside the engine on translucent planes. This method relies largely on rendering your film after shooting rather than everything coming together on set using real time graphics on LED walls, mixed reality green screen or live compositing methods.
It is one of many ways to use the technology but currently it is the method that works for me and the films I want to make. I will be exploring further virtual production techniques in the future including live tracking, mocap, metahuman and a few experiments I'm working on too.
I absolutely loved making this video and will certainly be making more like it in the future especially because I was able to end up with an unreal engine 5 short film at the end.
Please let me know in the comments if you would be interested in taking part in an Unreal Engine virtual production short film challenge.
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👀WHAT TO WATCH NEXT..
📺 An Unreal Engine Short Film In Three Days
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📺 The Smallest Virtual Production Studio
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📺 Virtual Production Playlist
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Hey there filmmakers! If you're interested in virtual production and Unreal Engine you should join my discord server. A cool little community where you can get help advice and inspiration. discord.gg/k6FthZUwJ9
I commend your bravery. Setting a goal and a deadline, then just jumping in, doing it and posting the result no matter how it turns out. Definitely commendable. Can only imagine what you would do with that story if more time was allotted to making it.
I might develop it further. It had some more shots in mind and a bit more story that I just couldn't do in time.
I love your comment about sometimes it's good to just make something to scratch that creative itch, while still having your "big" project in the works behind the scenes. Great video, and short!
I have my moments :)
THANK YOU so much for this. You are a real, relatable creator and the information you provided in this video is invaluable! You made me believe that I could make a film, since I have all the tools you have. I lack the courage and dedication you showed in this video, but now I feel like my first film is within reach. Thanks again! Subbed.
And thank you for this lovely comment. You can absolutely make a film with a very simple setup and basic equipment. Sometimes becoming less picky and bashing out some small projects helps to build up some confidence. I certainly did during producing this video
Just love your philosophy. It looks great! Ultra key can be a fiddle but when you learn how the parameters interact with each other its gets a bit better. If the flamable liquid just went down the frame a little further, it would look like it was going into the barrel. Also love how small virtual camera movements can really add depth without creating issues for the flat plane video content. Who needs trackers! lol!
I've been learning unreal engine and working on the same project the last few months. This definitely shows me what can be done in a short time once you've gotten some confidence with the engine. Great work man. Keep it up!
Keep going. I've got so many things I want to make but it's slow progress. You'll get there.
This feeling was definitely relatable. I've done two 48 hour films using Unreal Engine, and it's harrowing every time.
This would be my first but I can absolutely imagine it being difficult every time.
Very impressive! You make a film in 3 days and I don't even manage to realize my ideas for a short film in 5 years.
Hey just make something... Anything to keep the creative juices flowing.
Great video, thanks for sharing the journey and I enjoyed the film at the end! Looking forward to your next vid.
Good to have you on the journey with me :)
This is a really inspiring video. I have a bit of a background in VFX and I'm looking into getting into Unreal Engine and your video showed just what could be possible even without the perfect conditions. Thanks :)
You are very welcome. Always stoked to hear when people have enjoyed my work.
I cant reccomend unreal enough. its changed the course of my filmmaking career for certain.
Youve inspired me beyond comprehension brother. I’m just waiting for my green screen and lights delivery this week. Will start making stuff like this by giving more and more challenges to myself. Thank you mate
I love hearing when my videos have made an impact. I'm glad you're inspired! Go and make something just for the fun of it. Enjoy yourself.
Fantastic collection of talents. Intriguing concept to shoot in 3 days and very cool story concept! Could easily see doing several of these 60 sec films, as your story evolves ( e.g. serial form). Good stuff 👍🏻
Its an interesting idea for sure, i'd like to start building up the narrative side of the channel. Thanks for your kind words.
I absolutely love watching these one/small team UE5 movies! The level of detail and creativity in each project is truly impressive, and it's amazing to see what can be achieved by a dedicated person or team. I'm always blown away by the quality of the visuals and the incredible stories that are told. It's truly a testament to the power of modern technology and the boundless potential of human imagination.
Couldn't agree more. I can't wait to make the next one.
I was glued to the screen omg what a fantastic video!
Thanks so much!
I put a lot into this video and very glad you enjoyed it.
this is amazing work! Raw and honest! Love it.
This is the way
I believe you've accomplished the task at hand mate. Keep up the great work! 🖥
Great job! I’d love to hear a follow up on what you learned through this process
Certainly. I'll probably try the challenge again to see how well I do a second time.
very inspiring and very clean, gj bro!
Thanks!
Insane work!...i'm sure even with 3weeks i wouldn'rt have made it as far as you did....Well-done!
The effort you put into making your videos is extraordinary. You inspire me about what can be done with little equipment and the right knowledge.
Wow, thank you! I try to put as much effort in as I can.
Amazing stuff as usual. Just goes to show just being knowledgeable and working smart can go a long way. 3 days to do a ‘CG’ short film, the results are better then many I have seen. And you put it perfectly at the end, perfection is overrated. Respect.
I think I just needed to get creative and make something. Ill still be mad picky over the big projects but it feels good to have done this.
Thanks for the lovely comment.
Wow this was inspirational. I respect the fact that you were able to just go for it and create something!
We should all do it more. Really want to do it again.
@@JoshuaMKerr For real! Thanks for this!
I loved it man. I felt your tension both while filming, and in the short film. Loved the light swing, it really sells the story. I am curious if you would consider making a detailed tutorial for both video, and unreal part? I would love to incorporate something similar in my youtube videos. I think this virtual production gives so many possibilities when telling a story...
Yes it's something I'm toying with but would need to be a series of some sort. I'm certain it will be on the channel at some point.
@@JoshuaMKerr Say simplest possible scenario. I want to show a bit of b-roll, say of me being confused at the opera. I would not bother booking actual opera just to show me confused, but I could download free opera asset on the store, do a few pans with camera, and settle to some balcony with a camera pointing at a seat where I would superimpose myself. Similar to what you have already shown in other videos. Except that for those videos, person watching needs some/decent knowledge of unreal.
How would a programmer/wannabe youtuber reproduce that the easiest way possible? You already have all that explained in other videos, just that it is a bit advanced for someone diving in the unreal for the first time :)
But of course, I understand how demanding such "easy" tutorials are :) (I make them for programming myself....)
however if you get inspired, I think you will hook good audience, as you are doing really a lot with small budget,so... we are listening...
Incredible man. Unreal Engine is such a learning curve for me, but soon I think I will be able to do this. Also, as a tip, I'd slap a spill suppressor on your key to clean up that green spill on your face to make the key pretty much perfect.
Huh... I thought I had, but maybe it wasn't strong enough. Good tip thoug. I think keylight in AE is up there with the best.
@@JoshuaMKerr oh yeah, it's very minor green spill, nothing awful, maybe its even just my monitor picking it up. I've seen much worse spill lol. But yes! Keylight is probably one of the best I've worked with too. Nuke is really good, but I much rather prefer AE, plus I can maneuver better in AE lmao
Well done. I'm thinking of learning Unreal. Going through all the related videos.
You should! Its a lot of fun.
Hey. Just seen a couple of your videos. I’m really impressed by your talent not only as a filmmaker but as a storyteller and just the vibe and natural way you talk to your audience. Well done my friend. I’m pretty competent with premiere pro, just started with after effects, would love to get to unreal in the future. The possibilities for making great content are endless. Will be following you on your journey. 🙌🏻
Glad youre joining me on the ride. Thoroughly recommend trying unreal. even just to see what all the fuss is about.
Thanks for the lovely comment.
Awesome work!!!!
Loved your shortfilm 👍 …
Background/lighting was really good, first I thought you used LED wall, till I saw this breakdown. Looks so good.
Liked the idea of rendering all the clips at once in UE. Thanks for sharing breakdown info 🙏🙏.
Great work & thanks 🙏
Thanks for the kind words. I wish I had an LED volume haha but yes it seems it is still possible ot get good results with an old fashiond green screen
Very brave and honest to attempt this and post the results, regardless of the quality, online.
I wish I could do more quick and dirty work, but somehow I’ve been conditioned (like many of us I would imagine) to only show stuff that’s “best quality”.
I think the idea of a £0 budget, 3 day challenge is excellent as it will hopefully force those of us who are conditioned for perfection to get *something* together.
Honestly, I’ve spent that amount of time aligning a wall texture before…
Tell me about it. Its so easy to get caught up in the details and all too often its because we dont enforce deadlines on our own projects. Not to say we always should but sometimes...yes.
Definitely like the idea of running a challenge like this.
This is so dope thank you for making this. This is exactly what I want to do 💪🏿
Hey no worries! Im glad its useful
This is a great accomplishment. 3 days!!!!! Hats off to you.
Thank you so much! The question is...how to make it more difficult haha.
Only 48 seconds into the vid and just had to stop and say your movie idea is awesome, would love to see that concept fully fleshed out!
I'd love to get some time to do that.
Amazing effort and great insight into film production
Thanks mate
beautiful work!!
Thanks!
Nicely done. Just digging into VP and this was fantastic to watch. Very inspiring.
Really thrilled that the video seems to be giving people a bit some confidence. Virtual production has a steep learning curve but I'm trying to help by making videos like this.
@@JoshuaMKerr it’s fantastic - this is a whole new world that we’re entering, so it’s super fun to be learning from each other.
Absolutely agree. It's very exciting and a bit addictive actually...
Solid effort. Very clean green screen work. I think the shots where the background falls out of focus look pretty great. Many of the other shots gave me 90s FMV game vibes, but it's definitely something that could be stylistically honed with a bit more time. I love that you actually used your footage in the 3D space as an image plane. Setting ambitious projects for yourself on a tight deadline is a sure-fire way to conjure up situations that require clever problem solving just to keep things moving. Practicing adaptation on the fly like this will no doubt prove useful on a larger project down the road, when some aspect of the production inevitably changes at the last second.
Thanks for the feedback! I'd love to know what you think of my more recent effort called 'The Path' where there wasn't as much of a tight timeframe.
@@JoshuaMKerr
Just checked it out. Wow, The Path is much more visually cohesive. The color matching between the footage and environment, while not flawless, went a long way in selling the illusion. Close enough that I didn't find it distracting. Overall cinematography and shot composition is drastically improved too. I'd go so far as to call the wide shot of you on the hill gorgeous. You have a good eye.
I absolutely love the fact that modern tech is rapidly closing the gap between Hollywood and low budget indie films. Keep pushing the limits, dude. I think you're going to go far. Cheers.
@SewerTapes Thanks! Timeframe makes a massive difference to what you can achieve. Im still working on colour matching but im getting better at it.
@@JoshuaMKerr
Indeed. Also, note when I mentioned color matching being "not flawless", I only meant in comparison to distributed features with a budget and a dedicated VFX team. As far as the production range The Path falls into, I think the color matching is above adequate, given you had so many other jobs on the project, not to mention all your life responsibilities outside of filmmaking.
Bravo man. Something like this I was also planning to do. Just needed to know whether is it possible. You made the answer "Yes" !!
Oh yeah man. Just go for it
Amazing brother! thanks for the inspiration!
Hope I get to do it again soon.
This is BRILLIANT!!! And you made it in only 3 days, mind blown!!! 🤯🤯 i would love to see more in-depth unreal engine tutorials!! 😃😃
Stay tuned. I plan on some more tutorials diving into features useful for filmmakers. Also as the channel grows there could be some film challenges too :)
@@JoshuaMKerr that would be amazing!! 🙏🙏 truly appreciate your efforts, incredible work!!!
Just glad that people enjoy the work. It's a dream come true really.
This is really amazing!
Youre too kind. Glad you enjoyed it
Awesome work this inspired me to get started in learning unreal engine
Now that's what I like to hear. Go for it, it's a blast.
So inspirational! Love it
Glad you enjoyed it!
Mind-blowing 👏👏
cheers man.
Thank you for sharing your creativity and talent.
So nice of you to say
Fantastic!!!
Thanks for watching
I like your approach. That’s very cool. Very impressive.
you're very kind. I see lots of room for improvement.
you are brilliantly talented - you have a great future as a film maker - wishing you good luck
Thank you so much!
Nice work here, Joshua. I would recommend you use the new Media Plate that they brought out in 5.1. It's way better than the old "put a image sequence on a plane" method.
I have a few problems with media plate, it might be easier to add media but its a bit glitchy. I still prefer my method actually.
Man, that was brilliant ! And believe it or not, if for your trained eye as a professional it might not be perfect, for 99% of the potential viewers here on CZcams that's a just a great short movie. Plus when you know it how it has been made in only 3 days... Hats off 👏😊
Thanks! I'm sure that's true. Still... I imagine I'll be able to get better results by doing more challenges like this.
Very good!!
Excellent. Thanks
most people just think about making stuff, but you sir actually do it
It has do be done. I used to waste a lot of time thinking too.
The fact that the rich guy is more willing to burn his money than give it away while blaming everyone else was a perfect allegory for modern capitalism. Not sure if that was the intention, but nicely done.
Im a game dev who works in UE5 and branching a bit more into film making now. happy to have found your channel, have a like and sub. :)
Amazing... Someone got it. I thought I'd made it too subtle. Good to have you aboard.
Pretty awesome!
Thanks.
Even though you weren't completely satisfied with the final product, I'm guessing you had a lot of fun. Stress? Yes, but the fun kind of stress. I enjoyed it.
Oh absolutely. Fun stress. And may there be plenty more where that came from.
Good work!
Thank you! Cheers!
I needed that message today thank you :)
You're welcome. Get out there and make something.
@@JoshuaMKerr my programs just got an update so starting to get back to animation going to give Metahuman a got so many stories i what to tell have a good day you got a new sub out of me my friend
Excited to see what you make. Glad to have you along for the ride.
@@JoshuaMKerr Thanks my friend same go for you I can't wait to see what you do next i using a rtx3070 8gb vram and i have 32gb ram that i just updated to do my animation
Bro! For three days, that was sick!!! And I'd be down for a fun challenge!
Thanks man! I have to do it again...hopefully better next time.
Great Video!!
Question: Wassup with those two other screens?? Does that give you a more even key?
I used the green one in this video but I also have a red screen behind it that I use for product filming sometimes.
thats really nice, good job
o7
Thanks
Good job, thats inspiring
Thank you
Truly inspiring ,great talent brother
Thank you so much 😀
Simply A-MA-ZING....!!!!
Thanks glad you enjoyed it
Love this challenge!!! Following your channel for more of these informative videos.
One difficult point: the premise of ‘you’re killed if you’re rich’.
Wouldn’t it be easy for a person to set their bank account to
‘automatically donate or disperse all income over $x.00”
In this manner, everyone lives, the narrative conflict is somewhere else in your story
This is cutting edge stuff! Very few people on CZcams are doing this! I’m trying to replicate your workflow what camera are you using? Your key always looks so clean
Hi man, Thanks for your comment I appreciate it. I film on the S1H with the Ninja V recorder. The best tip is to use the histogram and false colour to make sure the screen is perfectly even.
Yes! The chaos makes us stronger. I can’t wait to see what you do for your dream project when that time comes. Unreal has open the doors for virtual locations for indie films in an unfathomable way. In the old days that Alley shoot wouldn’t have looked as cool and may have had the police shut you down. Or at least you would’ve had the fear of that. By the way if you ever decide to go bigger on the green screen, normal hanging LED fluorescent tubes drilled into a board of light a green screen very nicely, and run about 20 to 30 bucks a pair. I was able to light a 30 foot green screen for about 200 bucks (found the greenscreen on eBay for 400)
Sometimes we have to just throw ourselves into the deep end. I was shut down by the police when I was 12 for pretending a plastic tube was a rocket launcher...in the end all was forgiven. Very interesting setup for the green screen, do you mix that with some egg crates to direct the light?
@@JoshuaMKerr No need to direct since I was keeping the lights 6 feet from the green. They just flooded the background and my actors were in the foreground lit by more conventional photography lights. . The green tint of the cheaper light only helped the background. I looked it up on homedepot... they're 30 bucks now, but I think I purchased them during a black Friday sale. Costco has them too. I'll paste a link after this message...
This is fun! I have been doing previs for many years and just starting to learn more about parts of UE I haven't had to use. May I ask where did you get that green screen?
In this video, I was just using a neewer popup greenscreen. Easy to grab from amazon.
@@JoshuaMKerr ok cool, thank you!
Absolutely lethal. 👍🏻
Haha thanks
Cool video. Thanks
No worries
Thank you! I’m inspired!
Awesome! Thats what I make these videos for.
Really enjoyed that. I’ve just started getting into green screen. I’ve always found After Effects to be a nightmare but I’m great with Premier Pro. Can you suggest any great Unreal Engine courses to get started?
I'd probably start with the ones on the unreal engine site, they're great to understand the basics. It also depends on what you want to focus on or where to start. For me cinematics and sequencer have been load of fun. It's a deep piece of software and it's very easy to get overwhelmed. Take it slow.
C
Good work!
Thanks man
This was awesome!!! You've earned my subscription! You should do a more detailed workflow if you haven't already.
I'm glad you liked the video. The workflow has so many bits that I tend to make individual videos that explain each part. For instance, my photogrammetry video covers the photogrammetry portion of the process and I have other tutorials on using keyed media in unreal engine. Let me know if theres a particular part you're keen to know more about.
@@JoshuaMKerr thank you! And I’ll will check out your other videos. 💪🏽
Great video bud perfect way to describe a 3 day project
Thanks 👍
superb🔥🔥🔥
Cheers!
Bro the result is very good. If you gave yourself more time that would have been a masterpiece. Congratulations!
And yes, Unreal Is really Unreal!
Very nice of you to say. Deffinitely looking to make something with a bit more time to get things right.
@@JoshuaMKerr yes, with more time you could have cared more of the lighting and the result would have been even more perfect!
Congratulations!
Do you also make tutorials?
I do. Theres a bunch on the channel ;)
@@JoshuaMKerr I'll make sure to Watch them!
awesome!
this is dope great work it seems like it was a lot of work but came out great
Thanks! I can't wait to publish the next one. Should be this week or next.
so cool!!!!!
Thanks
question can i use the focus dropper on more than 1 person on a green screen video that on a plane?
What are you hoping to acheive exactly? You can set the focus anywhere you want but if two people are on a flat plane then there wont be any difference in the focus distance.
@@JoshuaMKerr thanks man
no worries
This is best bro.
Cheers
Awesome video. Cheers
great job bruh
Cheers mate
interested to know what specs need for this program
also what program did u use for photogramity ?
Check out my video on photogrammetry mistakes...czcams.com/video/TQggSy3YJYU/video.html
its superb bro
Cheers!
awesoem!
Cheers man
Thank You Very Much!
🙂🙏
Youre very welcome
I really like the story you went with for this. Very original considering everyone else is using the tiresome rich = bad plot devices you see in modern movies.
I just gave him a bit more depth. Money was still his achillies heel and he will probably still get killed.
BLESSINGS!
Cool!
Thanks
Great effort and sequence. Can you give some details on the photogrammetry process.. What software u used how to migrate into unreal and so please. Thank you. Thumbs uP
I do have a video about photogrammetry. Not exactly a step-by-step but you might get some useful info from it. czcams.com/video/TQggSy3YJYU/video.html
A great video . I hope you could also make a detailed tutorial on how you made it in unreal engine. thumbs up for you anyway.
I have a lot of tutorials on different elements of the process on the channel. Is there anything particular you're looking for.
@@JoshuaMKerr Thank you Josh. u r sweet. I know how to get rid of background in AE. I also have a basic knowledge of UE. I once tried to add a movie into 3d scene. I had problem with the edges of my video as well as the angle of shot . I could not zoom in and out as my video showed it is fake(composed). I also do not know if I can rotate a bit . Thanks again.
I can see what you mean. Maybe you would benefit from joining my discord. I have a support channel there where you could post particular problems and get some help.
Awesome!!!!
Thank you! Cheers!
Nice video!
Thanks!
dode you are amaizeng omg !!!
Thanks. There's still lots to learn
👏😍. that was perfect . Why didn't you use octane engine this time?
Good question. It was mainly due to the time constraints. I didn't feel I had time to optimise texture sizes and photogrammetry geometry to make octane a quick enough render.
I made an UNREAL ENGINE short film in onlu ONE(!!!) DAY!
Good work.
That was actually good! You really challenge yourself and this is key. Of course you could have done a better job in one week or in a month, but what's the point?
Q:
Why do you use after effects? it takes too long and it is full of bugs . Consider Da Vinci Fusion or the Resolve Package, you can save time.
Hi! thank you for your thoughtful comment. I think the answer comes down to familiarity and experience. I've used a tonne of other keyers, Davinci Fusion, Blender, Premiere, Red Giant etc...but I get the best result in AE. The matting itself is not too slow (maybe a bit) but once you've added the despill and refinements (plus any further effects) the render goes at a snails pace. Luckilly I was able to just leave it and didn't get any errors or crashes, but that is a risk too.
GREAT. tysm!!!!!
No worries.
Cool. What camera and lens you have used for the green screen?
Im shooting on the Panasonic S1h with a Canon 24-105. Links in the description ;P
Wow! great job buddy, I just like to know how you scan the street wall and export it in unreal engine at 2:45
Doing a few videos on this topic next. Im filming one right now :)
Well done Bro !!
Thanks ✌️