Miami University launches XR Stage for creative arts students with Meptik and Disguise
Miami University has inaugurated an Extended Reality (XR) stage, equipped and designed by Meptik, in partnership with Disguise. This initiative is part of the university's efforts to provide practical experience in real-time workflows for media production. The XR stage is located in the Richard M. McVey Data Science Building.
The XR stage is aimed at the College of Creative Arts students, specifically those in the Emerging Technology in Business and Design programmes. It will allow them to work on projects involving visual design for LED stages and technical integration. The curriculum includes courses such as Motion Design for Video Post Production and Creating Visuals for Music Performance, covering various disciplines like VFX, animation, and interactive installations.
“The design of this space and the hardware are unique to the curriculum we teach at the University,” said Ben Nicholson, Immersive and Reactive Lab and XR stage director at Miami University.
“We don’t want our students to function as single platform base users. We want them to know how and why equipment works and reinforce that immersive technologies are ecosystems that must be maintained and understood. Our system here was designed as a multiple input system to the wall where we can teach several methodologies, including Disguise virtual production and extended reality workflows, amongst others.
“Additionally, all the systems can play together to do deeply integrated interactions involving people tracking, moving light programming via Unreal Engine and sound reactive installations, to name a few. Meptik’s team was clever in how they met these demands and even included and taught our students about the actual installation process.”
Students were given the opportunity to participate in the setup process, working alongside companies like Rogue Productions for LED panel installation and StYpe for tracking system calibration. Meptik provided a training program covering Disguise fundamentals, lighting techniques, XR, and virtual production for students and faculty.
Sarah Linebaugh, co-founder of Meptik, stated, “At Meptik, we’re committed to fueling creativity and technical innovation.
“We’re excited to see the amazing projects and ideas that will unfold as Miami University students explore the boundless potential of immersive technologies in their educational journey. As the next generation of immersive artists and technologists, we’re looking forward to seeing what innovative workflows they will introduce to the world.”
