This project is a customized virtual camera toolset based on Epic Games’ VCam system.
Epic’s original VCam workflow is primarily designed around an iPad touchscreen interface. While this works well in many situations, our previs team needed a faster and more reliable control workflow for high-pressure, fast-paced previs shooting environments.
The previs team brought the following requirements to the Technical Art department:
Requirements
- Replace touchscreen-based UI control with game controller input.
- Reduce latency in the virtual camera video feed.
- Add predefined camera body, sensor, and lens presets.
- Add custom camera track and path-following features.
- Support multiple camera movement modes, including translation, flying, and other controlled movement styles.
- Integrate a real-time workflow for recording, reviewing, and editing virtual camera takes.
Development
We started developing our custom VCam toolset in Unreal Engine 4.27 and continued maintaining and updating it through Unreal Engine 5.4.
To improve reliability and performance, we redesigned both the hardware and software workflow. Instead of relying on the iPad for both control and tracking, we used it mainly as a video monitoring device. We integrated a low-latency professional wireless video transmission system to improve the viewing experience, while a Bluetooth game controller mounted to a custom iPad rig was used for camera control.
For camera tracking, we replaced the original ARKit-based tracking approach with a more stable OptiTrack tracking system. This made the toolset more suitable for production environments where consistent tracking, lower latency, and fast operator control were critical.
Result
The final toolset provided a more production-friendly virtual camera workflow for previs teams. It allowed operators to control camera movement more efficiently, switch between camera presets, follow custom camera paths, and support real-time capture and review workflows inside Unreal Engine.
Version 1
Below is a demo of an early version of the toolset:
Updates
1. Focus Puller Device
Later on, we implemented a physical focus puller device into our system, allowing operators to control focus inside Unreal Engine in a way that feels closer to traditional live-action filmmaking.
The video below shows how Unreal Engine receives data from the device and applies it to the virtual camera in real time:
2. Camera Body and Lens Data Presets
We later added real-world cinema camera body and lens data presets to the system. These presets allowed operators to quickly switch between different camera and lens configurations, making the virtual camera workflow closer to a real production environment.
This is how the virtual camera hardware looks now
I was not involved in this part. This is the final hardware built by the team in China. It looks very professional and integrates the controller, tracking marker, and video transmission system into one device. Very impressive work.
