We plan, shoot and finishFull hybrid production
More production value from your locations and sets
Source footageFinished frameOne producer plans, shoots and finishes around your budget.Synthetic Cinema International has produced film and television since 2004. With Synthetic FX, our effects company, we plan the shoot and the digital finish together.
- Changed
- Night falls outside: the daylight view becomes a lit city skyline.
- Kept
- All three performances, their wardrobe and the garland.
Holiday Touchdown · Hallmark Media, Skydance Sports & NFL Films · Produced by Synthetic Cinema International · Hybrid VFX by Synthetic FX
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Demo reel
See the finished shots
Two-and-a-half-minute reel of finished Holiday Touchdown shots: snowy Chicago streets and a pub, a Bears tailgate outside Soldier Field, a firehouse and a public library in winter, a Christmas market, a riverside cafe, a snow-covered house and the stadium colonnade.
01At a glance
You bring the scene.
We plan, shoot and finish it.
You bring
The script, budget and schedule
What the scene has to be, and what it has to fit.
Creative approval
Of the look before the shoot, and of the finished scenes.
SCI and Synthetic FX
Plan
What is built, what is filmed and what the finish creates.
Shoot
SCI crews and real performances on practical locations.
Finish and deliver
AI-assisted effects that artists finish, then the finished scenes or the whole film.
SCI has produced films for Hallmark, NBCUniversal, Lionsgate, Lifetime, Paramount and Netflix since 2004.
02Proof
Holiday Touchdown:
550 hybrid VFX shots
SCI planned the shoot and the digital finish together, filmed the real performances, and Synthetic FX finished the effects.
- Production
- Holiday Touchdown · Hallmark Media, Skydance Sports & NFL Films
- Produced by
- Synthetic Cinema International
- Hybrid VFX
- Synthetic FX
- Delivered
- 550 hybrid VFX shots
Case reelShots from Holiday Touchdown
How it works
Decide before you shoot
what's built and what's created
Location as filmedApproved lookFrom a real production
One still set the winter
On Holiday Touchdown, one approved winter still set the look for this storefront. On your production, we develop looks like this in prep.
A winter setting with less reliance on naturally snowy surroundings or practical treatment of the entire view.
Plan, shoot, finish · Illustrative scenario, with a real on-set frame
1Change 1: Doorway and bench: practical snow and dressing2Change 2: Trees, rooftops and the street beyond: winter created in the finishLocation planIllustrative production scenario01: PlanPractical snow on the doorway and bench ; the trees and street beyond, left to the finish - On set
02: ShootOn set (Holiday Touchdown): film the real performances, with practical dressing where the actors are. 
Winter finishIllustrative production scenario03: FinishAI-assisted creation transforms the wider setting; artists integrate it and match the sequence.
Frames 01 and 03: illustrative production scenario.
Frame 02: the Holiday Touchdown plate shown above.
Finished work
Four decisions,
finished on screen
Each example names what changed, what we kept, and what the choice can mean on a hybrid production.
A fuller scene from the crowd on set
Source footageFinished frameFinished frameTap the frame to switch. Press and hold to peek.
Showing finished frame
- Changed
- A sparse crowd becomes a packed holiday market, with snow on the stall roofs and tents and more lights.
- Kept
- The market layout, the stalls and the overhead camera.
- On a hybrid production
- Stage the extras the action needs; a smaller practical crowd can carry a bigger scene.
03Who does what
Your script in.
Finished scenes out.
SCI producers plan with the effects team, SCI crews shoot in Connecticut, Western New York and beyond, and Synthetic FX artists finish.
Schedule
Prep
Look and plan
We develop the look from your actual location and mark what to build, shoot and create digitally.
Before you commit
Representative test
We test the demanding shot, like a moving camera through the area we'll transform.
Shoot
Capture
Real performances and the practical details actors touch, plus the reference the finish needs.
- Delivery
Post
Finish and deliver
AI-assisted creation, compositing and artist finishing, reviewed with you against the delivery date.
Delivery
Confidence before you commit to the shoot. We settle the hard visual questions while the budget and schedule can still adjust.
Value
Where the production
dollar goes
The right hybrid choice can mean a lower total cost, more on screen at your target budget, or more flexibility in how the film is made.
| For the same scene | Conventional approach | Hybrid approach |
|---|---|---|
| Crowd | Book and stage the full crowd | A smaller practical crowd, extended in the finish |
| Night exterior through windows | Night shoot or lighting a large exterior | Shoot in daylight; the night view is created in the finish |
| Setting beyond the location | Find, dress or build the setting | Film a usable location; the surroundings are created digitally |
| Season | Wait for the season, or dress snow across the location | Practical snow where actors interact; the wider winter in the finish |
A qualitative comparison. AI changes where the effort goes, not whether artists are needed.
04The finished film
No one should see
the seams
The value reaches you when the complete scene works. Filmmakers stay responsible from prep through delivery.
Artists finish every shot
AI-assisted creation is one route to an image. Our artists composite, refine and finish every shot we deliver.
One approval route
The people you name sign off the look and the finished shots, and director, producer and network notes reach us through one agreed route.
One team, plan to finish
The team that plans the hybrid approach stays with it on set and through the finish.
Performance preserved
Your actors' performances are the foundation of every shot, and we don't create digital replicas of performers.
AI use listed per shot
Your designated studio or network contact gets a list of the AI-assisted steps on each shot before work begins.
Your footage stays yours
Your footage is never used to train AI models.
Questions
Questions about
a hybrid shoot
Will the performances be real?
Yes. We film real performances on real locations and sets, and plan practical treatment, such as snow, where actors interact. AI-assisted creation and VFX change the wider setting, and artists integrate it with the photography. We don't alter a performer's face, body, wardrobe or dialogue unless your production asks for it and approves it in writing, and no performer is ever recreated as a digital replica.
Do you have to produce the whole film?
No. We can carry the agreed scope from prep through delivery, work alongside your existing production team, or apply the same capabilities to footage already shot.
Can we see it before we commit to the shoot?
Yes, where it matters. We can develop selected looks from the actual location and test the hardest shot, such as an actor crossing the area to be transformed. That evidence decides what is built, filmed or created in the finish. Tests are scoped as part of the project.
How does the budget conversation work?
We compare the complete route to the scene you want: preparation, travel, building and filming, then AI-assisted creation, compositing, artist finishing and review. We put figures on a scene once its scope is defined.
How is the schedule built?
We plan the digital finish in prep, so the shoot captures what the finish will use. A planned finish can reduce dressing, set changes or company moves, and for your scene we list which ones. Delivery dates are set once the shot scope and its dependencies are known. We deliver to your network's delivery specifications.
Who approves the work, and how is AI use disclosed?
Your authorized contact approves the scope and any changes, and we agree up front who signs off the look and the finished scenes. Before work begins, we list the AI-assisted steps on each shot for your designated studio or network contact.
05Start
Bring us the scene
that feels
out of reach
Show us the scene and the budget or production constraint holding it back. We'll propose what to shoot, what to create in the finish and what to test first.
Three ways in
Prep through delivery
We plan, shoot and finish the agreed scope.
Alongside your team
We plan and finish with your production team.
Already shot
We finish the footage you have.
Private demonstrations by request
Holiday Touchdown · Hallmark Media, Skydance Sports & NFL Films · Produced by Synthetic Cinema International · Hybrid VFX by Synthetic FX