Germany - Leyard Europe has successfully completed the installation of a cutting-edge LED video wall at Hochschule Ansbach (University of Applied Science). The installation, featuring the company’s Planar Venue Pro VX with ultra-fine 1.9mm pixel pitch, delivers ‘exceptional visual performance with high brightness, superior contrast ratios, and wide viewing angles ideal for virtual production environments’.
The massive 50-panel display (configured in a 10-wide by five-high array) provides the seamless, high-resolution backdrop required for professional-quality virtual production and will significantly enhance the university's multimedia production capabilities.
The project, completed in May 2024, equips the university's TV studio with professional-grade technology that mirrors industry standards. Hochschule Ansbach, a renowned institution offering practice-oriented higher education in Bavaria, Germany, has established its Multimedia and Communication programme as a forward-thinking curriculum that combines theoretical foundations with extensive practical application. The programme features specialised tracks in film production, interactive media, and visual communication, all supported by modern facilities that now include the Leyard LED virtual production environment.
Students will use the LED screens as an integral part of their coursework, enabling them to create sophisticated virtual productions within a controlled studio environment.
The film department's comprehensive approach guides students through conceptualisation, script development, cinematography, lighting design, direction, production management, and post-production techniques – preparing graduates to excel in an increasingly technology-driven media landscape where traditional and virtual production methods converge.
"The LED wall is mainly used to simulate a TV studio environment and to play corresponding content," explains Prof. Dr. Rainer Schäfer, who oversees the studio at Hochschule Ansbach. "We're using it as a background for our virtual production, where we implement both Vizrt and StypeLand with Unreal Engine for the wall and for augmented reality applications, including set extensions and foreground elements.
“The technical specifications of the Planar Venue Pro VX deliver the colour accuracy, refresh rates, and processing capabilities essential for professional virtual production work."
The LED wall's sophisticated processing system enables real-time rendering of high-resolution backgrounds with imperceptible latency, crucial for maintaining the illusion when filming. The system's precise colour calibration ensures consistent visual quality across the entire display, while the near-seamless panel design minimises distracting bezels that could break immersion during filming.
The installation was facilitated through a competitive tender process, with Logando Display & Media Solutions, a German-based global service provider specialising in professional media technology, winning the contract to supply the system. This marks the first collaboration between Logando Display & Media Solutions and Hochschule Ansbach.
"In the end, Leyard offered the best price-performance ratio for this installation," notes Ulrich Klingel, laboratory engineer at the University. "While the substructure presented initial challenges, they were quickly resolved through collaboration between Leyard technicians and our team."
The Leyard installation team received high praise for their professionalism and communication throughout the project. "Since it was a project managed by Leyard on the installation side, the level of communication to the customer was very high," says Sven Eidam, key account manager at Logando Display & Media Solutions GmbH. "This was carried out professionally, and we always had the feeling that everything was under control."
"We're thrilled to see our technology being integrated into Hochschule Ansbach's curriculum," concludes Laurin Schmid, sales manager DACH at Leyard. "Educational institutions are increasingly recognising the importance of providing students with hands-on experience using the same advanced virtual production tools employed by industry professionals."