PROLOGUE

Looks like rain.

Dan Clifton:

There was a whole idea post-COVID—The Mandalorian, LED volumes, high-tech solutions. You can spend a lot of money going down those rabbit holes.

Alex Fernbach:

We’re brokering outcomes, not equipment. If the best answer is an LED volume, great. Not every problem wants a new tool.

Kara Vedder:

“Oh, Hi!”’s rain scenes relied on what Alex calls “retrotech”—effects that have had decades to let us down and still haven’t.



ACT 1

Small film, serious people.

Kara Vedder:

Congratulations on “Oh, Hi!” making it to Sundance all the way from Woodstock!

Dan Clifton:

This was a small film, made by a lot of people who were already doing bigger things—like Molly directing a movie for A24.

“Oh, Hi!” was written by Sophie Brooks, who developed the story during COVID lockdown with actor Molly Gordon, who stars in the film. I had produced Sophie’s first film with David Brooks, who is my friend and her brother. When Sophie had a draft of the script, David came onboard first, then me, and producer Julie Waters.

Alex Fernbach:

Was Sundance always in the back of your mind?

Dan Clifton:

Molly’s film Theater Camp premiered there and sold, so Sundance was always the goal. But it wasn’t a Sundance Labs project and wasn’t on the festival’s radar before we shot it, so it wasn’t a sure thing.

Kara Vedder:

What was it about this story that landed with you?

Dan Clifton:

I always enjoyed Sophie’s writing, having produced her first film. But there are very few modern films about modern dating and modern situationships that feel honest and accurate. The audience isn’t really asked to take sides. You see two flawed people go through a very normal modern relationship story. That was really compelling to me.

People thought it was extremely funny. People thought the movie was really relatable. I could hear young couples talking and arguing about it as we all walked out, which is always a good sign.



ACT 2

“Upstate” is relative.

Alex Fernbach:

How did Upstate New York become the plan?!

Dan Clifton:

Originally, “Oh, Hi!” was a double entendre—it was meant to be set in Ojai, California. We could have made the film on a very low budget there, but at the time the tax incentive was still a lottery system, so there was no way we’d get the California tax credit.

Knowing there was a 40% tax credit for the Upstate bump, we decided this had to be shot in Upstate, New York. A lot of us live in New York or have ties to it, so we moved the production Upstate fairly early.

“Knowing there was the 40% Upstate tax credit, we decided this had to be shot in Upstate New York. The Hudson Valley is a lot more accessible than people think.” “Oh, Hi!” – Producer, Dan Clifton

Kara Vedder:

What were the biggest challenges working with us Upstate?

Dan Clifton:

The biggest challenge was travel, living, and moving—but “Upstate” is relative. New York is a very large state. If you’re shooting where Cobalt’s stage is in Woodstock or around Kingston, it’s much easier to access from the city than people assume.

My first impression was that it was a really great space, exactly where we needed it. It had everything we needed—it felt turnkey from the start.

We walked in, took the tour, saw the setup, and realized pretty quickly that it would fit cleanly into the schedule and the plan. We always had a “day three” mapped out: two very difficult days, then our stage day, then everything else. For us, the stage day felt easy. We felt taken care of.

Dan Clifton:

The end of the film has a lot of rain, with multiple sequences built around it. It wasn’t feasible to do rain practically with towers—we ran out of money and the ability to do that at scale.

At first, we asked all the usual questions: Is it on location? Is it practical? How do we do this without worrying about weather cover? Over a matter of weeks, working with Cobalt, we started to see the shape of a solution.

Talking with Alex and spending time on the stage, we landed on a rear-projection rain setup that really plays well in the film. From a story perspective, it became one of the stronger practical gags.

Because we already had set builds on the stage, once we worked through the technical constraints, it became a no-brainer to move that work there, as well. It wasn’t a last-minute pivot—it was solved deliberately, in prep.

If you step back and look at it, it looks extremely silly outside the frame. But it played incredibly well on camera and totally sold the effect.

As soon as we saw the first demo on the monitor, we knew. We looked at it and said, “Oh wow—this really works.”

Alex Fernbach:

Let’s hear it for retro-tech! No need for a cannon when all you need is a fly swatter.





ACT 3

Don’t be afraid of old solutions.

Dan Clifton:

The fact that it worked so well—and we didn’t have to fix it later or spend more time and money—was huge.

We wrapped September 15 and had to submit a cut to Sundance a month later. That meant four weeks of editing, which is kind of insane.

Doing things practically, in camera, meant we could edit early without waiting for VFX. That really helped the movie.

We’ve all seen cuts where you see “VFX fixed later” or where scenes are missing. You can’t not feel that as a viewer—even in early cuts.

Dan Clifton:

Sundance is moving on from Park City after this next year, and it was a special time to be there. The film premiered in the Premiere section, so it wasn’t in competition, but audiences—especially young people—really responded. It was extremely funny and relatable.

We premiered in the Eccles Theater, which holds about 1,000 people, and you could hear couples talking and arguing about it as they walked out.

This was a small film made by people doing bigger things, so we really appreciated Cobalt as partners—using their expertise to support a relatively low-budget film. We’re grateful, and we won’t forget it as we move on to other projects.

There’s nothing worse than being in the edit and realizing a sequence doesn’t work and needs a reshoot. If something involves vehicle work or effects, get ahead of it early and figure out a controlled plan. Make the plan early. Don’t be afraid of old solutions.

Find good partners.

🎥



Level Up Your Production in 2026

Here are 26 Ways Cobalt Can Help



1. We’re Innovative.

We’ve assembled a kickass Virtual Production system! We’re always updating our tech, and looking toward the future so we can offer clients the perfect tools for their needs.

2. We’re Producers.

Our credo is Production Reimagined. In a world of drafty, blank spaces, we strive to offer more— comprehensive tools, thoughtful amenities, and a supportive team. Our clients feel the difference, right away.

3. We’re Turnkey.

Why spend your precious time sourcing lights, rigging tools, and folding chairs? At Cobalt you don’t need to. We save you time and money by offering all your production essentials onsite.

4. We’re Virtual Set Virtuosos.

We set up the East Coast’s first Virtual Backlot to help you save money, reduce waste, minimize the cost of crew hours, and place your story in any location you can imagine. A huge win for productions and the planet!





5. We’re Woman Owned.

Cobalt is a woman-owned soundstage. We strongly believe in working toward gender equality in the Industry. Please join us in supporting even more women-owned businesses and women-led projects in 2025!

6. We’re a Green Facility.

We’re committed to considering the impact of our actions on people and the environment. We also do our part by donating leftover food, investing in sustainable Virtual Sets, and making our own non-toxic, chemical free cleaning products and Kara Care skincare swag.

7. We’re Magic Makers.

Arthur Clarke said, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic”… We have the tech to make the magic, and Cobalt’s tech wizard, Alex, can help you make the most of it.

8. We Care About Peace ~ Quiet and Comfort.

Because of our Industry background, we understand how a thoughtfully curated soundstage can put clients at ease – and even help them relax – to elevate the quality of your work. Our well-appointed client spaces make it comfortable to hold a meeting or simply ‘peace out’ for a sec. And we’ve even expanded to the country with Cobalt Woodstock ✌️.

9. We’re By Producers, For Producers.

We leverage our Industry experience to make everything you need easily accessible, so you can focus on what matters– doing your best work. We’re committed to creating the most comfortable, convenient, cutting-edge, and cost effective experience.

10. We’re Production Advisors.

Helping producers problem-solve their projects is one of our specialties. We believe in taking the time to listen, and we’re quick to offer innovative and practical solutions to save your production time, money, and stress. In fact, we provide consultations for producers and writers on their scripts to see where cost-savings might be had with virtual production or not! Just ask!!

11. We’re MoCo Masters.

Our clients have convenient access to our comprehensive inventory of Motion Control equipment—the largest and most diverse on the East Coast. Our Gazelle Motion Control camera crane also goes on the road–anywhere your production does.

12. We’ve Got the Matrix Man.

Cobalt’s very own Alex Fernbach designed and invented the 1st array camera used in the legendary “Bullet Time” scene in “The Matrix.” These days, he brings his unparalleled knowledge and creativity to Cobalt to support YOUR productions.

13. We’re in the Heart of New York’s Artistic Enclave.

Cobalt Woodstock is centrally located smack in the middle of one of New York’s original centers of Art. Your production, talent, and crew will have access to stylish BnB’s, outstanding food, and a community of artisans, all while saving a bundle on parking, lodging, and meal cost.

14. We’ve Got ALL the Tax Breaks.

Because we’re in upstate New York, your production will get up to 40% of ABOVE AND BELOW the line on qualified expenses. No need to read between the lines here. And, 45% for post!

15. We’re Wired.

Superior connectivity makes it effortless to multitask and monitor your production. At Cobalt, a live HD feed broadcasts from our soundstage to the client room, conference room, commercial food prep kitchen, wardrobe, and makeup areas.

16. We’re Streaming Live.

Our Live Streaming capability allows decision-makers to keep a tab open on their computer, even remotely, with continuous HD quality footage delivered in real-time. Clients can tune in and weigh in, so the whole production isn’t waiting around to get the thumbs-up 😉

17. We Don’t Nickel and Dime You.

At some soundstages, your itemized bill can look like you went on a Whole Foods bender. At Cobalt, there’s no need to rent or carry in basic amenities—and we won’t bill you for them either.

18. We’re the Swiss Army Knife of Studios.

Cobalt’s inventory of in-house production tools is curated and updated by seasoned professionals. We offer lighting, rigging, high-end lenses, precision robotics, Virtual Set, and more!

19. We Do Tabletop.

We’re passionate about tabletop at Cobalt. It’s in our DNA. Our home ec kitchen is fully-equipped and easy-to-reconfigure for all types of food-centric projects. This, combined with a wide variety of miniature rigs, specialized optics, and in-house motion control, makes producing tabletop easy and efficient.

20. We’re on Your Team.

At Cobalt, we’re as passionate about production excellence as you are! We invite you to make us your secret weapon by leveraging our experience and resources—just like an extension of your team.

21. Get Creative.

No two productions are the same, so our spaces are built to be ultra-flexible. We’re hosting Virtual projects with clients making use of our live compositing, and Live-streaming with others! Some are even making use of our insert stage for still shoots all-the while. And if its easier for us to come to you with our Tech, we’ll do that, too!

22. Make Us Your Secret Weapon.

At Cobalt, we’re as passionate about production excellence as you are! We invite you to leverage our expertise and equipment, just like an extension of your team. We’d love to hear about your next production, and how we can help.

23. Use More, Pay Less.

We deliver the best value by offering generous free amenities and a comprehensive inventory of onsite production tools.

24. More Green (A Lot More).

Cobalt Woodstock is home to one of the largest green screens on the East Coast. This newly installed screen is 70 feet wide and 20 feet high, which means you can let your production’s imagination run wild.

25. Park to Your Heart’s Delight.

Want to drive a box truck into the soundstage? No big deal, we can handle it. Need easy and stress free parking for your whole crew? We’ve got that too. Cobalt is all about making things easy so you can focus on the work at hand.

26. Feature Film? No problem.

Cobalt helps all kinds of clients, all over the world, with all types of projects. We’re even helping produce features now <3 Let’s talk.









Happy New Year!

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

New Year’s means so many things—a time to pause and reflect, a last hurrah, a fresh start.

As we let go of last year and focus on the future, we’re setting our intentions for a New Year driven by clarity, growth and gratitude, sprinkled with abundant opportunities for fun, wonder and giving back.

May the New Year bring you everything that makes you feel alive and connected!

3 Santas, an Elves’ workshop, and
a 12-Hour Livestream

CASE STUDY



Challenge.

So… our client came to us with a fun holiday live-streaming challenge. The production company’s whimsical concept involved staging 3 Santas and a workshop of singing elves while live-streaming with kids simultaneously for 12 hours. Our client wanted to know: Could we provide the tools, expertise, bandwidth, and breakout spaces to support this ambitious project and deliver Christmas for all these kids? Hell yeah!! Sh-yeah!

Solution.

You know us—Cobalt is MADE for solving complex technical challenges. To pull off this unique project, the client flipped the script, using our wide-open main stage for production work. This strategy freed up our cozy support spaces to be transformed into magical realms where all the Santas and elves Livestreamed for delighted kiddos all over the country. With a dedicated technician to “direct traffic” on our server, our screaming bandwidth successfully supported the 12-hour event. We have have two ISPs with multiple SSIDs each to support the production team’s 45+ devices while segregating the hardwired Livestreams with unique passwords to restrict bandwidth and avoid any problems. Redundancy is key.





Impact.

The “12 Hours of Magic” virtual event was a smashing success with no major issues. Since Cobalt’s EFX Campus is so much more than an empty-box stage, our networked conference room, production office, and client suite made it easy to shoot 4 simultaneous interactive performances while affording lots of rooms to spread out. Countless kids got to meet Santa, his elves, and Mrs. Claus in a creative new way that was surprisingly even more personal than the usual “Mall Santa” experience!

Lets talk. Ho Ho Ho



How to watch our ‘Jimmy Fallon’s Holiday Seasoning Spectacular’ on NBC







If your idea of getting into the holiday spirit involves music, laughs, and Jimmy Fallon doing what he does best, then Jimmy Fallon’s Holiday Seasoning Spectacular should do it!

This festive special turns Fallon’s Holiday Seasoning album into a full-blown holiday partaaaeee, complete with celebrity guests, musical performances, and plenty of moments that feel like controlled chaos — the good kind lol. Whether you missed it when it aired or just want to watch it again while wrapping gifts, here’s how to tune in.



Where You Can Watch the Holiday Fun

The easiest way to watch our Jimmy Fallon’s Holiday Seasoning Spectacular is online.

You can stream the full special on NBC.com or through the NBC app, though access may depend on your TV provider. If you already have a login, you’re just a few clicks away from holiday entertainment.

If not, Peacock has you covered. The special is available to stream on NBCUniversal’s platform, making it a great excuse to finally use (or justify) that Peacock subscription.

When It Aired (In Case You’re Curious)

The special originally aired on NBC as a primetime holiday event, bringing music, comedy, and festive energy straight into living rooms everywhere. Think holiday concert meets late-night show, with fewer awkward office parties and better music.



What You’ll See Our the Special

Jimmy doesn’t do the holidays alone. The special features a stacked lineup of familiar faces from the Holiday Seasoning album, including:

• Dolly Parton, spreading pure holiday joy
• The Jonas Brothers, because it wouldn’t be a special without them
• Justin Timberlake, bringing the smooth holiday vibes
• LL COOL J, proving holidays can have swagger
• The Roots, holding it all together as usual
• “Weird Al” Yankovic, because of course
• Mariah Carey, reminding everyone who really runs Christmas

It’s a mix of performances, skits, and moments that feel like they barely stayed on script — which is part of the fun.

Can You Watch It for Free?

Possibly, yes. New Peacock subscribers may be eligible for a free trial, which means you could watch the entire special without spending a dime. NBC may also offer limited free streaming on its website or app, depending on availability.

Translation: it’s worth checking before you grab your wallet.





Final Thoughts

Jimmy Fallon’s Holiday Seasoning Spectacular is exactly what it sounds like — festive, silly, musical, and not taking itself too seriously. It’s an easy, feel-good watch that works just as well in the background as it does when you’re actually paying attention.

If you’re looking for something light, funny, and unapologetically holiday-themed, this one fits the bill nicely. Cobalt is THRILLED to be able to present the 1st All-Virtual Holiday Production. We’re humbled to have been able to be a part of this success.



Building Worlds Indoors: The Rise of Virtual Production



A New Chapter in Filmmaking

Rather than sending crews across continents or building elaborate physical sets, today’s filmmakers are increasingly turning to a different approach — creating entire worlds under studio lights. With rising costs, tighter production schedules, and growing demand for high-quality content from streaming and OTT platforms, Virtual Production offers a practical, creative alternative.

This shift isn’t just about saving money — it’s about reimagining what’s possible. Virtual Production (VP) lets filmmakers build immersive, flexible, and realistic cinematic environments in a studio.

What Is Virtual Production — And Why It Matters

At its core, Virtual Production merges real-world filmmaking with real-time digital rendering. Live action performances, and practical props combine with computer-generated environments to create scenes that feel real — often captured “in-camera”.
Key components often include:

• LED walls or “volumes” — large, high-resolution displays that project virtual sets behind (and around) actors.
• Chroma Keying works identically but also offers flexibility as far as deliverables, and is an extremely cost-effective methodology.
• Real-time rendering engines (like Unreal Engine) that generate dynamic backgrounds on the fly.
• Camera-tracking systems (and sometimes motion capture), ensuring that as the camera moves, the virtual environment shifts appropriately — preserving accurate parallax, perspective, and reflections.

The result: filmmakers can “see” the final composite live with lighting, reflections, and backgrounds — as if shooting on a real location.



Benefits: Why Studios Are Embracing Virtual Production

Creative Freedom & Scale

With VP, you’re not limited by geography or practical constraints. You can build alien landscapes, fantasy worlds, futuristic cities — or recreate remote natural environments — all in a studio. This “world-building” capacity gives storytellers enormous creative flexibility.

Realism — In-Camera, Not Post-Production

Because scenes are composited in real-time, actors, props and scenery respond naturally to the environment. Reflections, shadows, and ambient light all behave believably. That makes the final footage completely photorealistic and reduces the need for extensive visual effects work later.

Speed & Efficiency

Traditional shoots — especially on location — come with major logistical challenges: travel, weather, unpredictable scheduling, and post-production heavy lifting. Virtual Production can often compress that. Changing scenery can be as simple as loading a new digital asset. Scenes that once required separate location shoots can now be done back-to-back in the same studio the same day.

Cost Savings (Long-Term)

Virtual Production reduces travel time, trucking, loading in and out, set construction, and heavy VFX workloads — savings that add up across multiple scenes, episodes, or projects. Plus, you end up owning the assets for late use or repurposing.

Flexibility & Control

Virtual Production gives filmmakers total control over the environment: time of day, weather, background details, lighting — everything programmable and adjustable. Continuity becomes easier, reshoots are less painful, and lighting/weather constraints nearly eliminated.



How It Works — From Pre-vis to Final Frame

1. Pre-visualization & Design: Before filming begins, virtual environments are designed digitally. Set layout, lighting, camera paths — everything can be planned and tested virtually. This allows for early creative decisions without building physical sets.
2. On-set Real-Time Shooting: During production, actors perform within virtual environments complete with the necessary practical props. The benefit of this is that actors can haptically relate to objects in a scene. Actors feel more comfortable, and the viewer can’t distinguish between what is practical and what is digital.
3. In-camera Capture & Reduced Post-Production: Because much of what would have been added later via VFX is visible on set, the amount of compositing, lighting correction, and post-production needed are significantly reduced. The footage captured can be both ‘final pixel’, and elemental, enabling any and all traditional post work. This is ideal in cases where the CG is a W.I.P. placeholder and needs more tweaking later.



Real-World Impact: Where Virtual Production Is Already Changing the Game

Technical innovations and cost pressures have pushed Virtual Production from novelty to standard practice, across films, TV series, advertisements, and more.

Big-budget series and blockbusters benefit, but even smaller productions — commercials, indie projects, short films — are now able to leverage VP thanks to available tech and real-time rendering tools.

As workflows become more refined, and technology becomes more accessible, Virtual Production increasingly offers a faster, more efficient path from concept to realization — while offering unbounded creative opportunities at a fraction of the cost of traditional production methodologies.



What It Means for the Future of Filmmaking

Virtual Production represents a fundamental shift. It frees filmmaking from the constraints of physical location, weather, and time-of-day. It reduces costs and environmental impact. Most importantly — it grants filmmakers unprecedented creative flexibility.

As real-time rendering engines, LED volume technology, and camera-tracking systems evolve, the line between digital and physical filmmaking continues to blur. The “worlds” we once built by hand — painted backdrops, physical sets, location shoots — are giving way to programmable environments, controlled entirely from a computer.



When your work becomes your play.

“The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it.” – Steve Jobs.

THIS is who we are! Our work has literally become our play! Every day it seems as though a new challenge presents itself with each call, text or email, but we jump in wholeheartedly because storytelling is genuinely what we love to do.  ❤️

What seems simple was actually a complex synergy amongst multiple teams to create a seamless, charming fairytale.  This had only one cut, and ALL the on screen images were LIVE.  No compositing at all.

The best part was working with an extraordinary pre-vis team that output their file for us to import into our motion control system.  Believe it or not, it only took a few minutes to tweek a few turnarounds and adjust focus.  The prop team took the CG blueprint, and matched the position of the devices, exactly.  One of the biggest challenges was keeping all the devices charged AND synchronizing the story across the devices.

A shout out to Berkey Systems for inventing such an amazing rigging system!!

Keep an eye out for news about our upcoming holiday adventures!

We’re keeping it Eeeeek-o-friendly all year.

From clean products to organic coffee…

We’ve got some real treats!

We’re always raising the bar to make Cobalt the healthiest and happiest environment for everyone who works here. From friendly and honest business practices, to nontoxic products, we’re committed to celebrating what’s good for people and planet, all year long. We’ve even launched some eco-surprises like Virtual Production and ON-LOCATION Virtual Production. Drop in for an organic coffee and check out our magnificent Woodstock stage and EFX campus while you’re here!

Happy Halloween!

We know that Virtual Production and Motion Control can be intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be 😉 Today’s technology is easier than ever to master. So, let me show you how you can get the shot, and be fast, cost-effective and maybe even have ‘good times’.

Count on Cobalt’s Virtual Production experts.

The demand for Virtual Sets has increased exponentially in the past year. VSet is a must-have resource for today’s producers and directors, so we make ourselves available to share our expertise. We’re the first soundstage to offer Virtual Sets to the public on the East Coast, so our team has in-depth experience to guide you. Whether you want to sell your clients on a Virtual Production methodology, or whether they requested it themselves, we can help.

Your secret-weapon production partner.

Producers and production managers/coordinators love working at Cobalt because we understand their challenges far better than your average soundstage. As a company founded by producers, for producers, we’re uniquely equipped to offer an additional layer of support you won’t find anywhere else. When you book our locations and services for your productions, we take the time to listen, and we’re quick to offer solutions that save productions time, money, and stress.

Motion control, under control.

There’s no cinematic discipline that requires a more consultative approach than Motion Control. And fortunately for the Tri-State production community, Cobalt’s own Alex Fernbach has been a pioneer in the field! As the inventor of the array camera that he created for the “Bullet Time” scene in “The Matrix”, Alex now brings his encyclopedic knowledge and unparalleled creativity to advise our clients.

Not long ago, we pulled off a miraculous MoCo job with celebrity talent and only 48 hours notice to coordinate equipment and talent in three time zones. We also provided a custom rig that had to fit in an extraordinarily tight space… Cobalt’s very own “Stage Manager Steve” even drove the rig overnight to Chicago, so our client wouldn’t miss a beat. We never want to let you down, and that’s just how we roll… sometimes all the way to Chicago 😉

Let us be YOUR secret weapon and see how we make everything easier for the production community. Let’s talk.

The Holiday Special That Shouldn’t Have Worked

The sets were virtual – the pressure was not.

“We delivered ‘final pixel’ in-camera—no post-compositing anything. What we shot is what aired.” – Kara Vedder It still sounds impossible: an NBC musical with a dozen celebrities, a dozen unique environments, and just three days to shoot it. But this high-stakes collaboration became a master class in choosing creative freedom over fear.

NO POST, NO PROBLEM

Making ‘Final Pixel’ Delivery Possible

When holiday magic looks suspiciously like a crane swinging over a blue hallway

“Everyone showed up for me.”

“The label asked, ‘Hey, would you do a holiday special if NBC wants to do it?’ I go, ‘Yeah! Let me ask.’ And of course NBC is like, ‘We love it! Let’s do it.’ And I’m like, ‘Oh, here we go!’ So then you have to make the phone calls again. I really don’t like asking people for favors, but for this album I called in every favor — and everyone showed up for me. 

Then they were like, ‘We need one more big ending.’ So I go, ‘Why don’t I fly through the air and land on the roof of 30 Rock? We’ll have the Rockettes up there, I can sing on top of New York City, and we’ll make it festive.’ So we did it — and it turned out beautiful. We used drones. It was the coolest thing ever. Honestly, it was the most holiday I’ve ever celebrated so far. It was great.”

– Jimmy Fallon on the ‘Spectacular,’ as told to Forbes

From the outside, it looked like Christmas as usual: celebrities, confetti cannons, too much velvet. But this one came with a twist: there would be no ‘just fix it in post’ – no margin for error.

Twelve celebrities, twelve sets, twelve synchronized video feeds. Three tracked cameras, real-time live compositing, with final-pixel masters handed off at wrap. And it all had to happen in three days. That’s four celebrity performances a day, in environments no stage could hold, swapped faster than a lighting cue. Math that makes producers check their blood pressure.

The miracle was that it worked so cleanly that NBC could air it as-is.

This installment of Reel Histories cuts to the human hustle behind NBC’s virtual breakthrough: the Zen-like producer gaff-taped to his phone, the DIT who hasn’t blinked since Monday, and Alex, hanging a net of sensors like Christmas lights on a tree only he can see.

ACT 1 – ASSEMBLE THE ELVES

This wasn’t a holiday special so much as a stress test in a sequinned sweater — angels in headsets making it sparkle like Rockefeller Center.

Bill Bracken:

I had been with Brad Lachman Productions for 30 years — we always did the annual televised events for Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, and Christmas in Rockefeller Center. When Brad retired, I let the producers in my network know I was available, and Jesse Collins was one of the first to reach out.

We had worked together on Macy’s Fourth of July show. He said, ‘NBC is making me the producer, and I’d love for you to be my head of production.’ The following year, Jesse signed on to produce Jimmy Fallon’s Christmas Special for NBC and brought me in.

“You won’t go wrong”

Bill Bracken:

We did a lot of searching when we were back in New York doing the Fourth of July show, but stages didn’t have the Unreal Engine technology. They had the big LED screens — they look just like Unreal Engine Technology, and you can put whatever background you want behind them. 

But what we were really looking for was the total package, with a green screen where you can create immersive environments you can really walk through and feel like you’re actually on set.

Not many companies in New York or LA do it — it’s an emerging technology. So I called Tad Scriptor, a very smart guy who is a tech manager for the Oscars and has helped design the Dolby Theater for many years. Tad told me he had worked for a company called Cobalt. He said, ‘They’re in Upstate New York, they’re lovely people, they’re immersed in this technology. You won’t go wrong.’

We had a call with Alex and Kara, and they sent us some very helpful demos. We were able to find two other companies utilizing Unreal Engine, but we felt that Alex and Kara had a real commitment to this technology. They had all the gear. Once we established that Cobalt could bring its technology to Manhattan, we knew we could put all this together.

Bill Bracken:

It really was the people. A big part of our business is connecting with people, engaging their interest, gauging their expertise. So it didn’t take us long to recognize Cobalt’s expertise and deep interest in the project. We booked a stage in Brooklyn with the largest green screen we could find, although we had to paint it blue due to the Christmas trees.

Drew Finley, who’s based here in Los Angeles, created all of our backgrounds. We had worked with Drew on the 75th Emmy Awards to recreate classic sets like Archie Bunker’s living room and the bar from Cheers. Drew made them look real with just one or two practical pieces for talent to engage with. Drew did everything else. 

Drew’s expertise and Cobalt’s technology were really a good fit.

For the Emmy Awards, it wasn’t Unreal Engine — we used an LED volume with Drew’s backgrounds. When Tad referred me to Cobalt, Jesse and his Head of Production, John Wehage, were familiar with the technology, but it was completely new to me. 

Alex and Kara were instrumental in teaching me about it.

Alex Fernbach:

It basically allowed the writers to go crazy and not edit their expectations due to budgets or locations. If they wanted a snowfield, if they needed a hardware store, if they needed a hall with a lot of doors as the overarching magical concept, if they needed the Jonas Brothers in a snow globe, or if they needed a cabin in the northwest where Justin Timberlake’s piece happened, that could all be done.

And it could all be done handily. It’s a lot less expensive to build these environments in computer graphics than it would be practically. From the moment the decision was made to produce this using virtual technology, it liberated the writers and creatives at Jesse Collins to concept with complete abandon.

Once we were on set, if changes needed to be made — if we needed more decoration in the magical hallway, for example, or more snow falling outside the hardware store — we had an on-set team of CG artists led by Drew Finley to implement those changes.

Bill Bracken:

The Christmas album is all original songs — no standards. To support Jimmy’s storytelling with very few limitations was the challenge. It ended up being a one-hour Christmas special with 12 songs and 12 different environments.

Bill Bracken:

Jimmy had spent several years creating this Christmas album, and he didn’t want a traditional Christmas special. I still remember that first Zoom meeting with Jimmy, the writers, Jesse, Dion Harmon, Janae Rosenthal, the executive producers, and me. Jesse pitched his vision to Jimmy, walking him through the entire show from start to finish — Jimmy didn’t say a word the whole time. When Jesse finished, Jimmy stood up and gave him a standing ovation.

A great example is the song Chipmunks and Chestnuts. ‘Jimmy and his team would love to have 1000 animated chipmunks on the set.’ That wasn’t possible, but we were able to place virtual chipmunks in the 3D background and stuffed chipmunks in the foreground. 

And it went on from there.

Alex Fernbach:

Take the hardware store, for example. A practical set would have occupied a large percentage of any studio. Not to mention time. 

The amount of time and labor required to build these sets would have been substantial. And lose the benefits of on-the-spot flexibility. It was a lot more efficient and creatively liberating to build the sets in computer graphics.

ACT 2 – MORE SLEIGHBELL

The shoot unfolded like a shaken snow globe with writers lobbing new gags like snowballs, hot off the printer, and the team popping out new sets like Pez.

Alex Fernbach:

We had an amazing lighting team. I think they put about 40 or 50 computer-controlled fixtures up on the grid just below our constellation — our tracking marks.

Imagine a U-shaped, 3,000-square-foot shooting proscenium. It was a three-wall blue screen, about 50 or 60 feet deep and wide. All of the shooting was supposed to happen in that space.

So, every environment had some unique flooring: a roll of linoleum, a collection of rugs, a wood floor, and a carpet down the hallway. We marked where those discrete floorings lived on the blue floor. Then the props came in and were positioned to coexist with the virtual set.

The lighting department programmed cues for each scene into the computer system. So once we had rehearsed, we could save those lighting cues. We could light, say, the magical hallway, then bring in an exterior snow scene, then the hardware store — and each was memorized and recalled at the push of a button.

It was almost military precision.

“It didn’t raise an eyebrow.”

Kara Vedder:

In the rehearsal, the props are marked just like in a theatrical performance, so the actors knew where everything would be, even though the walls weren’t there.

I always compare it to a black-box theater. You’re not building the practical sets — you’re staging them and performing live. The crew in black runs things in and out, seamlessly.

Alex Fernbach:

Beth, the director, is a seasoned veteran of three-camera shows, often live. She was actually live-switching her monitor while the performances were happening, making sure she had the coverage she needed. It was her normal workflow — nothing about the new virtual methodology changed her process.

Her directing style was identical to Saturday Night Live: three cameras, live-to-tape. For her, it was transparent. It didn’t raise an eyebrow.

Bill Bracken:

Beth is used to working fast. She used to direct SNL — she knows Fallon, and she has the skills to capture the comedy and the action on three cameras. The writers kept refining the material right up until the end, which meant we had to stay nimble.

Kara Vedder:

The big savings came from delivering ‘final pixel’ in real time. Not only were we recording the live composite, we were also recording the raw camera feed, the background, and the matte — so if something needed to be changed in post, you had all the elements.

For this project, there was no post-compositing anything. What we shot is what aired. The story was already told.

Alex Fernbach:

The beauty was that the process was non-stressful. Just different. A lot of thought went into pre-production, which made the critical path smoother. At the end of it, you had a fully composited, fully rendered, editable bunch of assets.

Fewer surprises. More control.

Kara Vedder:

That also extends to the amount of time it takes to build, light, shoot, break it down, and set something else up — however many times.  

The crew hours involved and renting the space – multiply the cost, or compromise the quality.

Alex Fernbach:

The audience senses the shortcuts – a cheap set takes you out of the moment. With virtual sets, we could give NBC something photoreal, with wide shots, with choreography, with feet on the ground. We weren’t trapped in medium close-ups like in an LED volume. That was the liberation.

Kara Vedder:

Every now and then, you need to see their feet.

Alex Fernbach:

Unbound to an LED monitor, the cameras were free to wander — on dollies, on cranes. Drew built ample set elements so Beth had what she needed on the spot.

Kara Vedder:

Pulling off those changes so close to your shoot date is an accomplishment.

Alex Fernbach:

Andrea, the Art Director, did an amazing job integrating the props and communicating with Drew to ensure there was harmony between the practical props and the virtual environment. 

So instead of building sets, you’re paying CG artists. But the total cost is significantly less.

Kara Vedder:

You’re saving a lot of money, but the timeline and production pipeline have shifted, so you spend more time and budget in ‘pre.’

Alex Fernbach:

Then, it doesn’t cost much more to build an opulent castle than it does to build a two-wall office with Venetian blinds. There’s no reason to settle for a chintzy two-wall set anymore.

We’ve done everything from gothic slashers to 1914 Paris. Anything can be done. This production was ambitious — three tracked cameras. But for a typical shoot with one or two cameras, it’s cost-efficient, with creative benefits that outweigh the old ways.

Once you’re in the land of virtual, the limits fall away.

ACT 3 – WELCOME TO TINSEL TOWN

Think air-traffic control at the North Pole: Weird Al, The Roots, and a Roots cover band played by fourth-graders landing in the same six-hour window – without a single crash.

Bill Bracken:

At first, Alex wasn’t sure we could pull it off, because The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon’s shooting schedule left only three days for us to shoot this.

Alex Fernbach:

Bill put together an astonishing team of people, and he was a champion of organization, delegation, and clarity of communication.

Bill Bracken:

I always had faith that this would work because of the team we had put together. Kara Vedder The lighting crew and the stagehands were amazing.

Alex Fernbach:

Yes – and we flew people in from LA. There were three engineers, each working on one of three cameras — two on dollies and one on a crane. The engineers could speak directly to the three camera operators and alert the camera assistants if there were any issues.

Drew brought four CG artists. Hartman’s TV Tech team networked the cameras. We had three engineers, each handling one of three cameras. Plus, a dolly grip, a crane operator, and a DIT handling twelve streams of video.

And then we had technical communication between the virtual production systems — since there were three, they all had to talk to each other.

So, if you add that to the three dolly grips and the crane operator, we had about 20 to 25 people. Hartman had a few more, including a DIT handling 12 streams of video. And it was all final pixel, because the production didn’t want to deal with massive amounts of unnecessary data in post, given the time constraints.

Beth, the director, is a seasoned veteran of three-camera shows, often live. She was actually live-switching her monitor while the performances were happening, making sure she got what she needed.

She was editing on the fly — basically a paper edit — making sure she had the coverage she was used to.

And that’s the huge point: for the director, there were no compromises.

It was exactly like her traditional way of doing SNL: three cameras, live-switched. Only here it was live-to-tape.

This new production modality didn’t even raise an eyebrow. It was completely transparent. 

Kara Vedder:

It was intuitive. Beth’s workflow and directing methodology were identical, except the work progressed more efficiently. From the outside, it looked chaotic — twelve sets in three days. But inside the workflow, it was smooth. The energy was gleeful.

Everyone experiencing it for the first time was blown away.

“This is why we do this.”

Alex Fernbach:

That moment for me was on day one of shooting when we were switching sets and I saw Bill’s smile, and Beth’s joy – working as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

Kara Vedder:

It doesn’t always get said, but for me, it’s knowing that we save them a ton of money without putting limits on the creative. Whatever they came up with, it could be done.

Alex Fernbach:

Beth, live-switching, made sure she had every angle covered so NBC got ‘final pixel’ at wrap. No re-compositing, no bottlenecks.

Alex Fernbach:

Anything you produce in computer graphics can be more realistic, photorealistic, and enabling than a bare-bones practical set, which may limit you to close-ups and medium close-ups as opposed to seeing your musical in a wide shot. It’s like going to a theater and seeing a performance on a screen from the waist up. It makes no sense. So Bill’s predilection to consider an alternative production modality was spot-on. 

Bill Bracken:

It’s not a one-size-fits-all solution, but given the material, story, and the nature of the music that Jimmy and his team created, it was a perfect fit.

One thing that helped sell NBC and Fallon’s team on the idea was a demo Alex and Kara created. It showed a performer walking through multiple rooms, vacuuming, and when you compared the raw footage to the final composite, it was astonishing. That proved what was possible and helped get the whole project off the ground.

Alex Fernbach:

It’s like when film shifted to digital. At first, everyone was afraid images would look like a surveillance camera at 7-Eleven. But once they saw the results, they never went back. Virtual production is the same. Once you see it, the paradigm shift is inevitable.

Bill Bracken:

Seeing it on paper is one thing. Walking in, you might think, How is this going to work? But once you see it on a monitor, everything starts to click.

Alex Fernbach:

It was also fascinating to see how Bill handled all the disparate elements that go into a production of this size and caliber. 

Since NBC wanted ‘final pixel,’ we put together a bulletproof camera system. With the show’s complexity, you want something proven to deliver predictable, dependable results. 

We went with the SONY platform that delivered high quality HD resolution footage. Our VP platform and all its components integrated beautifully with SONY’s platform, and we had four identical camera packages that could be swapped out instantly as a failsafe.

So the challenge wasn’t how to apply the bleeding edge virtual technology. Sometimes the best solution is ‘retrotech,’  like using a mirror. Apollo 11 was looking for gaffer’s tape and coat hangers. It wasn’t a 3D printer that saved the day – it was common resourcefulness and a history of dealing with these kinds of problems on the fly.

Kara Vedder:

Bill, what would you say this production proved for you?

Bill Bracken:

I think it was just the power of pulling together the right team – Cobalt, Drew, Beth, Andrea, lighting, props – everyone contributed. The writers kept refining the material right up until the end, which meant we had to stay nimble. 

Having such a strong collaboration made that possible.

🎥