Virtual Production & Rendering · July 23, 2026
Chaos Demonstrates Relightable Gaussian Splats for Location-Based Filmmaking
Creative Bloq · News Article
What happened
In an interview with Ian Dean, Chaos’ Chris Nichols describes a Western proof of concept that combined location photography with a scanned house brought back to an LED stage. Relightable Gaussian splats let the team introduce digital lights and geometry into the captured environment. The article also identifies a Nuke/Katana rendering bridge as development work. Image: Monstrous Moonshine / Chaos Innovation Lab, via Creative Bloq.
Why it matters
Changing the lighting makes a captured location more adaptable to a script. Integration with geometry matters when the scene needs new structures, shadows or practical-looking illumination.
Antique Robots take
Capture with the intended shots in mind. Test camera travel and lighting changes before assuming a scan can support every angle or time of day.