cobalt

Cost Control
Being Turnkey, we have production tools like no other Soundstage. Our onsite offering includes cameras and lenses, Virtual Sets, Motion Control, Livestreaming, Video Village, and more. As part of your Turnkey Soundstage rental, we provide a comprehensive G&E package, facility-wide, fully distributed video, and hardwired broadband ethernet. We also include more of what’s missing from empty-warehouse soundstages, like wardrobe racks and steamers, tables and chairs, and a fully-equipped Crafty kitchen, Home Ec Kitchen, and woodworking shop with flats and jacks.

Complete Convenience
On top of the convenience our Turnkey Soundstage provides, Cobalt is 15 minutes from Midtown. If you live in NYC, that’s closer than most stages in Brooklyn and Queens! Get here quickly and easily by car, train, bus, and ferry. Enjoy the convenient parking, shops, and restaurants nearby in a super-cute, safe neighborhood where you’ll feel comfortable spending time. You can also work, shoot, or stay at our Hoboken House location- a sundrenched 2,000 square foot carriage house three blocks away!

The Tao of Cobalt
While our Turnkey Soundstage is keenly focused on hardware and technology, we understand the need to balance those aspects with warm hospitality, comfort, and calm vibes. As a result, our next-level amenities and customer service have been compared to those of a boutique hotel. Host your VIP clients here and treat them to comfortable, private breakout spaces including a Meditation Room. We also use aromatherapy and green cleaning supplies throughout our facility for a healthy and happy environment.

MLet Cobalt elevate your next production experience.

Let's talk.

High-speed camera work demands critical synchronization of events which is virtually impossible to do manually. Luckily, we’re in the business of designing innovative technological solutions to meet all your production needs.

Cobalt’s Programmable Logic Controller (PLC)
Alex, our resident tech guru, designed and engineered a digital interface to synchronize the camera, camera mover, all your rigs, cuing, EVERYTHING to precisely coordinate each and every component for critically choreographed shots. (Shout out to Stage Manager Luke, who serves as our in-house Ladder Logic programmer. He spearheaded the whole system setup from engineering, wiring, to programming!)

The device triggers actions in a specified sequence and with millisecond precision to keep events on cue during high-speed camerawork. This is essential for high-speed shots because, as Alex put it, “You can have a high-speed camera mover, but you have to focus on something. If you can’t trigger the event, the subject might not be there when the camera gets there. So, for example, if you want to shoot a person falling with the shot starting wide and ending on an ECU (to show the grimace on his face), critical timing is key.”

Why Millisecond Accuracy Matters
With tools like Phantom high-speed cameras being more in-demand than ever, productions also require accessories to use the technology successfully. While the camera is moving fast, timing becomes vastly more important. When you’re shooting at normal speed, a fraction of a second doesn’t matter much. If it’s high-speed, however, the tolerance is closer to a millisecond. A switch or an electronic eye may trigger the action, but getting the shot depends on having the hardware and interface to control the cues. Being off by ¼ sec at 24 fps might not be a deal breaker. But, the same shot at 1000 fps would have the action happen after the station break. You get the point.

Flexibility to Create Without Limits
Cobalt is the Tri-State Area’s destination for innovation, and we can customize a user-friendly technology package for any production needs you can think of. We even put Cobalt’s Programmable Logic Controller in a travel case - compact, quick-n-easy, and the solution for all your critical choreography needs!

Make our Turnkey Soundstage your go-to tech partner.

Let's talk.

We’ve got two comfortable,
convenient locations, three blocks apart.

Let's talk.

Challenge
In June 2021, repeat client Netflix came back to Cobalt to test camera, lens, lighting, and filter combinations to create the mood the director had in mind before the new season began... Camera test days are different situations from production where prep decisions and artistic choices are mostly decided in advance. For this kind of project, the Director of Photography experiments to push the limit of what their camera and lens packages can do. You might need a slider, some atmosphere in the air, or a powerful light—all of which Cobalt can provide on the spot.

Solution
Our Turnkey Soundstage was built to support the flexible needs of productions on every kind of assignment, including this one. The DP conducted open-ended experiments to learn the equipment and design the film's look and feel. To use the space and time even more efficiently, the production used our wardrobe and talent holding areas to select and try on costumes and test how they moved so that animators could sketch the wardrobe in motion. Then, combining these elements, the lighting and the color palettes of fabrics got to merge and play together, too. Lastly, they used garment steamers, rolling racks, and more, putting everything we had to productive use!

Impact
This kind of behind-the-scenes learning could never happen in an empty warehouse without sacrificing efficiency and cost savings. Cobalt's versatile space and comprehensive equipment and amenities made the day run smoothly, and this Netflix production wrapped a successful day on a high note. We’re a grab bag of opportunity when it comes to testing!! Plus, we have killer AC ?

Make Cobalt your production partner!

Let's talk.

Challenge
In June 2021, a major multinational content producer brought a shoot to Cobalt. First, the client needed a quick save (booking in the weekend before yikes!), so we fast tracked the usual Grip and Electric schedule. Extra spaces were required to creatively accommodate their Star Talent, his guests, and 30 cast members. With the production team and crew members, there were about 60 people in the house! Finally, the project required a “black box” filming environment, and they also needed an extra creative solution for the numerous folks to feed.

Solution
Of course, Cobalt came through! The client officially booked on Saturday, and gave us the G&E list on Sunday. We orchestrated our vendor partners and in-house production tools, and they were good to go Monday morning! Their catering team set up shop in our spacious Home Ec kitchen, and served cast and crew in our Craft Service Kitchen. We provided black Duvetyne fabric for the project’s scenery, and our generous accessory spaces came in handy helping 30 cast members, the crew, the star, and his guests find lots of comfortable space to spread out.

Impact
The shoot was a great success, with no issues! This is where our Swiss Army Knife experience really shines. Whether it’s having close vendor relationships to tap in for last-minute needs, loads of versatile, separate nooks and crannies to host people, or access to a whole additional kitchen for catering, we are truly ready for anything! The star was delighted with our VIP amenities, and the production went super smooth—who could ask for more?

Make Cobalt your production partner!

Let's talk.

Create without limits—or waste.
Single-use set building can be problematic for your budget and the environment. Shooting on-location comes with a major carbon footprint too, especially when we account for the additional fuel needed to take an entire production on the road... Our Virtual Backlot provides a brilliant, zero-waste alternative with a radically lower environmental impact. In contrast to practical set building, our computer-generated Virtual Sets are photorealistic and waste-free making them as sustainable as they are effective.

Keepin’ it clean—and green.
From reducing our carbon footprint to creating a healthier studio experience, we’re committed to considering the impact of our actions on people and the environment. Our president, Kara Vedder, even offers her award-winning Kara Care Skin Food for purchase onsite. Kara Care was featured in Elle Magazine, and springs from Kara’s belief that anything you put on your skin should be organic and edible—that same passion was a driving force for making Cobalt a green facility! From the locally sourced, organic coffee we serve, to the chemical-free cleaner we make ourselves from lemons, essential oil, vinegar, and baking soda, we take a holistic view of wellness and strive to deliver the cleanest, greenest experience possible.

Everything is connected.
With our steady stream of food shoots and craft service-supported productions, we end up with a lot of extra food to share. We take pride in the fact that we never let usable leftovers from your productions go to waste. For more than 20 years, we’ve donated the extra food to The Hoboken Shelter. This local nonprofit provides meals for the hungry and shelter for the homeless. We’re grateful to play a supporting role
in their efforts!

Give us a call or schedule a tour to learn more about our green facility. We’d be happy to show you how our green practices can help you feel good and work better!

Let's talk.

• "The Equalizer" starring Queen Latifah and Chris Noth
• "Ways and Means" starring Patrick Dempsey
• "Wutang: An American Saga"
• "Dr. Death" starring Alec Baldwin and Joshua Jackson
• "FBI Most Wanted"
• "Lisey's Story," a mini-series based on a Stephen King novel
• A Lifetime movie premiering on Valentine's Day
• Features for Netflix, Lionsgate, Sony Pictures, over a dozen independent films
• And many TV episodics from Apple TV Plus, NBC, Hulu, Showtime, and Amazon Prime

Experience a Premier Shooting Location
Our Turnkey Soundstage and Carriage House locations are purpose-built to make shooting here comfortable, convenient, and cost-effective. Experience "Hollywood on the Hudson" for yourself and find out how our By-Producers, For-Producers production facilities serve you better!

Located smack in the center of “The Mile Square City”, our Hoboken Soundstage is never more than half a mile from these amenities:

• Our Hoboken House location
• Grocery stores
• Restaurants and caterers
• Hardware stores and paint suppliers

Our Soundstage and Hoboken House locations are also:

• 15 Minutes from Midtown Manhattan, and 5 mins from The Lincoln Tunnel and The Holland Tunnel
• 19 Minutes to Newark Airport
• 7 minutes to the W Hoboken Hotel
• Easily accessed via NY Waterway Ferry, PATH Train, and NJ Transit Bus

Hoboken's college town vibe feels a world away from big city traffic and crowds. We have:

• On-street parking that's $1 an hour (NYC is up to $7.50)
• On-demand Citi Bikes and Zipcars
• Terrific Burgers at The Elysian Café, Hoboken's oldest bar <3
• Dinner and drink options for every lifestyle and mood—Washington Street, our “Restaurant Row”, is just a short stroll away
• Our waterfront esplanade features spectacular views of the NYC skyline