How ESPN Deportes Produced Its First Virtual Studio Show with Qimera
Updated: 2 days ago
When ESPN Deportes turned 20, it celebrated with something the channel had never done before: a show produced entirely in a virtual studio. The anniversary special aired in Spanish on ESPN Deportes and in English on ESPN2, and it ran on Qimera, our real time virtual production platform built on Unreal Engine.
This case study covers how the 3D virtual set was conceived, designed and put on air, and what it means for broadcasters who want network level visuals without network level complexity.
The Brief: A Set as Big as the Moment
ESPN asked for a set with high visual impact and real structural scale. The look had to be elegant, modern, spacious and innovative, and the space itself had to make the content stand out.
The set also had to work hard. It needed to hold one to three people in individual and group shots, and move between four kinds of segments without feeling repurposed:
Sports
News
Special event
Interviews
Many of the faces who have led ESPN Deportes over two decades took part in the show. That raised the bar further: this was a celebration of the channel's identity, so the virtual set had to feel like ESPN, not like a template.
From Moodboard to 3D Virtual Set
Qimera's team joined at the concept stage. We built the virtual set from a moodboard that broke the space into the same decisions an architect would make for a physical studio.
The final concept is a two level atrium. An illuminated glass floor sits at centre stage, a floating staircase climbs to a mezzanine with glass balustrades, and an oversized 3D ESPN logo anchors the main floor.
The walls do most of the storytelling. Floor to ceiling vertical displays carry talent portraits and hero sports imagery, while wide screens on the upper level run show promos and video. Because every display is a live surface inside the virtual set, the content changes per segment without touching the structure.
Built physically, this set would need steel, glass, LED walls and weeks of construction. In a virtual studio it is a library of 3D assets that can be relit, reframed or rebranded in software.
Real Time Unreal Engine Compositing on Set
The special was recorded as a live to tape show and composited in real time, so what the crew saw on the monitors was what viewers saw at home. According to the production team, the footage needed no post production retouching after recording.
Qimera renders the 3D virtual set natively in Unreal Engine and composites talent into it live. That is what makes the glass floor reflect, the light strips read as real light, and the talent sit inside the space rather than on top of it.
The whole project, from creative process to production day, ran over a couple of months. Qimera supported the ESPN team at every step, from concept and design to setup and the shoot itself.
What Broadcasters Can Take From This
This was ESPN Deportes' first real time virtual production.
Your first virtual studio does not need a VFX department. The production team singled out how easy Qimera was to operate throughout the process. A broadcast crew can run the virtual set without depending on a single Unreal Engine specialist.
Real time means finished on the day. With Unreal Engine compositing happening live, there was no post production queue between recording and air. For live and live to tape formats, that time saving is the difference between possible and not.
Design support closes the experience gap. Qimera worked alongside ESPN from the first moodboard. Teams new to virtual production get a set built around their brand, instead of a generic backdrop.
One studio, every format. The same virtual set handled sports, news, special event and interview segments. Swap the content on its displays and the space serves the next show.
Scale stops being a construction problem. A two level atrium with glass floors and floor to ceiling screens is out of reach for most physical studios. As a 3D virtual set, it fits on a green screen stage.
Build Your Own Virtual Studio
Whether you are planning a milestone special or upgrading a daily newsroom, Qimera gives your team a 3D virtual set, real time Unreal Engine compositing and the design support to get it on air.
Request a demo to see what your studio could become.
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