Exploring the Future of Believable Characters
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About the Studio
Grounded in a decade of research and experimentation into how technological innovation reshapes character development, performance, and the human experience, the Virtual Acting Studio provides concrete advice, creation, and education for the development of believable characters across diverse media and industries.
How to Collaborate
Research & ADvice
Advising on what types of characters to deploy at which moment, choosing the right technological form, and analyzing their impact on the audience. Explore more.
Creation
Crafting believable characters from concept and behavioral design to script, casting, and final performance. Explore more.
Education
Sharing insights and challenging audiences to think about the opportunities, the boundaries, and the ethical dilemmas between human and synthetic behavior. Explore more.
Not a replacement for human performance, but an additional layer to it.
A pioneering practice
Driven by a human-centered vision
In 2017, I started the studio during the development of my experimental VR film, Strange Head. It was my cinematic vision that drew me into the world of tech innovation, and it was an early encounter with AI that sparked a central question that still drives the studio today: What does ongoing technological advancement mean for character creation and the human experience?
In the beginning, it felt like pioneering in a completely invisible world. Searching for like-minded people, I started traveling around the world, exploring the state of the industry, initiating research projects, and contributing to international studies. I immersed myself in traditional techniques like motion capture while analyzing future AI capabilities with tech investors. It became a journey driven by a clear question: Will technological advancement make it possible to replace humans in this field—and why would we have that as an ambition? In what moments is this an addition and in what a loss?
Once, my journey started with a focus on actors performing within virtual worlds. Today, it has gained a profound new layer: the virtual itself has become performative, actively shaping how character, presence, and meaning emerge.
I think this is an endlessly fascinating world with immense opportunities, even more unanswered questions, and an ongoing ethical debate. I invite you to become a part of it.
Cassandra de Klerck – Filmmaker, Founder of the Virtual Acting Studio
The studio’s ongoing pioneering journey is supported by partners including:
