MASTERS OF VP
A group of VP instructors, researchers, technologists, and experts dedicated to advancing real-world knowledge in the field.
About the Masters of VP
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Gaston Alvarez
Originally from Mexico City, he is a technology lover and multimedia production automation enthusiast, with more than 19 years of experience collaborating with various Mexican studios, including VoltronMX, Urbe Collective, Linterna, Organika, Acitron, and Spaceboy.
He has held multiple roles both on set and off set, including camera operator and camera lead, drone operator, music producer, online producer, audio and video editor, colorist, motion graphics and VFX compositor, VFX supervisor, DIT, data wrangler, VTR operator, and, more recently, he has specialized as a Virtual Production Supervisor.
Dr. Carlos Vilchis
Carlos Vilchis is originally from Mexico and has more than 15 years of experience in the digital creative industry, combining art, technology, and education. He holds a PhD in Computer Science with a focus on real-time graphics, AI-driven digital humans, and virtual production.
He has collaborated with renowned studios such as Industrial Light & Magic, where he received an Emmy for engineering contributions to virtual production. He has served as a consultant and instructor for institutions and companies including NBCUniversal, UBC, TelevisaUnivision, Emily Carr, and Tecnológico de Monterrey, and he currently teaches at Humber College in Toronto.
He is the founder of Virtual Production Academy, Eugenia Digital Humans, and HCG Technologies.
Manuel Almejo
Manuel Almejo is a virtual production and real-time cinematics specialist based in Mexico City, currently serving as CTO / Virtual Director at Imeca Labs and recognized as an Unreal Authorized Instructor. His work focuses on commercials and film pipelines, using Unreal Engine to create reliable, high-quality imagery on set through VP supervision, ICVFX and tracking workflows, lens calibration, and pipeline optimization. In 2025, after leaving his previous role, he launched his own virtual production studio, collaborating with teams across Mexico and the United States. While he occasionally develops immersive and XR experiences, his core focus remains audiovisual production, helping make real-time workflows more practical, predictable, and creatively flexible for professional crews.
Looking to grow our group
We are always looking to connect with more experts, creators, technologists, educators, and industry professionals who want to help strengthen the Virtual Production ecosystem in Latin America and the Spanish-speaking community. If you are working with real-time workflows, ICVFX, Unreal Engine, tracking, cinematography, VFX, LED stages, XR, or any related area, we would love to have you as part of this group to share knowledge, exchange experiences, and help build a stronger, more collaborative industry together.
A Hybrid Camera Tracking Methodology for Virtual Production
Integrating Outside-in and Inside-out systems
This research residency in Breda focuses on a key question for the future of Virtual Production: how can we evaluate and combine different camera tracking systems in real production environments?
The project will compare outside-in optical tracking, camera-led inside-out systems, and emerging computer vision approaches under practical on-set conditions. Instead of looking only at technical specifications, the research will explore how these systems perform when facing real cinematography challenges such as occlusion, lighting changes, lens metadata, camera movement, and post-production requirements.
At the center of the project is the idea of hybrid tracking workflows. As Virtual Production evolves, the strongest pipelines may not depend on a single technology, but on the intelligent combination of multiple systems. By bringing together researchers, technology partners, and production professionals, this project aims to create a practical framework that helps the industry better understand, design, and adopt reliable Virtual Production tracking solutions.
Become a Sponsor
We invite technology manufacturers to sponsor this research and help shape the future of Virtual Production. Sponsors will have the opportunity to showcase their technology in a real research environment, connect with industry and academic partners, and contribute to the development of practical hybrid workflow standards.