Just when you thought we’d made it through the Unprecedented Years, a historic strike takes over Hollywood, shutting down a huge portion of the industry and affecting pretty much everyone who works in show business in one way or another. It has been another memorable year, to say the least. After a hardfought summer coming on the heels of several years of rapid change in our industry, one thing is certain: the art of filmmaking isn’t going anywhere. The landscape will continue to shift, but creativity endures. 

It has been an exciting year of growth for us here at Origin Point. Now that 2023 is drawing to a close, it’s time to look back at some of the highlights that made this a year unlike any other. 

In February, we returned to the HPA Tech Retreat in Palm Springs: a must-attend annual event for the Post Production community. While we were busy capturing footage and interviews of the event, we were still able to meet some inspiring new people at the conference, and learn about the plethora of new technologies that are emerging in the world of Post.

One hallmark of this year was the uptake in Virtual Production. VP gained popularity during the pandemic, partially due to travel restrictions and safety precautions, because it offered a solution for productions to continue even if they weren’t able to shoot on location. The ability to capture scenes set in a vast desert landscape, or seascape, or foreign city – all within a controlled environment – has remained appealing, even after restrictions have been lifted. 

We had the opportunity to shoot on a Virtual Production stage this summer at SV Studios,  where their incredibly knowledgeable team helped us to create a basketball hoop on the moon. This piece was incredibly fun to shoot and gave us the chance to get familiar with the latest tech, including AI generated environments, created by Interco.AI. On top of that, we had the chance to work with a top notch wire rigging team, and a few of our favorite frequent collaborators to bring this vision to life. 

Outside the Virtual Production stage, we love being out in nature, and we found ourselves filming in the forest for several of our projects, the Redwoods for Barco, Angeles National Forrest Marchway Camping Equipment, and Big Bear for Zonli Heated Blankets.  One of our favorite projects outdoors this year was for the Wildlands Conservancy, filming a long term documentary about their efforts to rewild the Bluff Lake area, helping to return mother nature to her original state. Keep an eye out for that content coming soon!

We wrapped out the year producing the HPA Awards – a night of celebration for the entire Post community, honoring the top achievements of 2023. We were thrilled to be a part of the awards for the 3rd year in a row. It’s always a great and fun experience working with the HPA team. And this year was particularly special, as the first year the awards were hosted at the gorgeous Wolf Theater at the Television Academy. 

As we look back on this year, we are overwhelmed with gratitude for our amazing crew. We are truly lucky to have such a great group of collaborative, creative, and all-around awesome individuals in our network. We’re immensely proud of the projects we’ve been involved in this year, and truly humbled to be counted amongst such talented teams of people. 

Now is the time for all of us to take a step back and reflect on the journey so far. Time to reward ourselves with some rest, and quality time spent with loved ones. Let us all take this moment to savor the peace and calm that this season brings. Remember all  the challenges that have been overcome, and all the amazing things that have been accomplished this year. 

The ride continues in 2024! See you in the New Year!