Playa Vista | Goose

Paul Debevec inside his geodesic light box at the USC Institute for Creative Technologies in Playa Vista.

The motion-capture technology that made “Avatar” one of the most expensive films in history will, in the not too distant future, become the tools of independent film-makers on shoestring budgets.

As computer graphics algorithms improve and costs fall, shooting a film with lights, cameras and human actors may be considered a quaint and expensive luxury.

After months of speculation, Google has purchased 12-acres of office space in Playa Vista that could accommodate as many as 6,000 engineers.

The $120 million lots run along the north side of the Hughes “Spruce Goose” hangar, which is across the street from the Google-owned YouTube Space LA, a film and production studio for YouTube content creators.

The Google buy “really makes and brands Playa Vista as the tech and innovation capital of Los Angeles,” Playa Vista’s city councilman Mike Bonin told the LA Times.

Bonin was “stoked” to hold his swearing-in ceremony last year at Google’s Venice offices, a binoculars-shaped building designed by Frank Gehry.

Brookfield Residential, which is developing high-end housing in Playa Vista, is also likely stoked by the prospect of thousands of high-salaried professionals moving into the area.

The rising rents in Silicon Beach are sure to follow.

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Category Archives: Playa Vista

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Paul Debevec inside his geodesic light box at the USC Institute for Creative Technologies in Playa Vista.

Google expands Playa Vista footprint with 12-acre purchase