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ASU tech center brings film tools to Mesa
ASU launches its Media and Immersive Experience Center in Mesa with advanced film and video technology. FOX 10's Brian Webb reports.
MESA, Ariz. - Arizona State University is taking Hollywood-level technology to its satellite campus in downtown Mesa.
What we know:
It is called the MIX Center, which stands for Media and Immersive Experience Center. The facility is a place where students get hands-on, state-of-the-art experience in the ever-changing media landscape.
ASU students are back in class, and one of the cool things they are learning is how to make content from TV shows and commercials to video games and filmmaking using super cool technology just like they have in Hollywood.
ASU wants to be known as an innovation destination, and this building is proof. Rooms are filled with high-tech media tools, taking old-school audio and video into the future.
What they're saying:
Ryan Pottle serves as the technology director for the MIX Center.
"Got one that is the Sidney Poitier New American Film School, and then we have students that are studying immersive experience, entertainment design, VR, XR. A lot of cool, and we'll say, new degrees in the space," Pottle said.
The center opens its doors to hundreds of students working on all kinds of projects, from film-making to virtual reality, video games, and more.
"Now we’re gonna start seeing a new age of film making, which is more experimental, visuals in the background are tied to the behavior or voice or like motion capture, of the actors," said Calvin Stanley, video systems technical director.
ASU's Media and Immersive Experience Center gives Mesa students high-tech production tools.
In a room that rivals some Hollywood movie studios, students work on videos for the ASU dance team. Productions like this are managed by Stanley, a former student who is now helping other students make their dreams come true.
"We’ve had a bunch of films that were shot here that have actually made film festivals," Stanley said.
The old saying goes, "Technology is out of date the day you buy it." But the core mission of the MIX Center remains the same: storytelling.
"It doesn’t matter if you have those big fancy LED walls, it doesn’t matter if you have the latest camera, if you can tell a good story, you can do it with a piece of paper. If you can tell a good story, you can do it word of mouth, and we’re just using this technology, hopefully as close to the forefront as possible to tell even cooler stories," Pottle said.
What's next:
ASU students can learn the technology in Mesa and then take it with them to Los Angeles for an internship or maybe even a job one day. The university is also working on developing a master's program in Mesa in the near future.