Chongqing – Dawa Imaging Technology (Dawa), a leader in virtual production technology, is demonstrating its innovative filmmaking solutions as a core participant in the 2025 Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Film Festival. Hosted in Yongchuan, Chongqing, under the theme "Technology & Film · Charm of the SCO," the festival highlights the convergence of "Film + Technology," where Dawa plays a pivotal role.

The 2025 Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Film Festival will be held in Yongchuan. (Photo/DENG Nan)

Reshaping production with mature virtual solutions

Dawa's LED virtual production system enables fundamental workflow transformation. "Virtual production is the essential core connecting the film industry's entire chain," stated Danny Deng, Senior Vice President of Dawa Group. By engaging projects early, DaWa utilizes virtual pre-visualization to plan storyboards, lighting, and blocking, creating executable blueprints before filming commences. This eliminates downtime where crews "wait for the director flipping pages," Danny emphasized.

Dawa's large screen is used for virtual shooting. (Photo/DENG Nan)

This approach delivers significant efficiency: within the offline production segment (60% of total costs), Dawa's technology achieves "at least 50% cost and efficiency gains." Savings stem from compressed schedules, which reduce actor and crew costs, high-fidelity digital assets replacing physical sets, and minimizing location travel expenses for large crews.

Asserting technological leadership, LU Qi, the President of Dawa Group, stated, "China's virtual production maturity surpasses Hollywood's." He explained Dawa's design philosophy: "The domestic industry's slower start necessitated intuitive technology – enabling directors to operate effectively via streamlined steps." This user-centric approach underpins Dawa's advantage.

Technical maturity validated

The film "Resurrection," which won the Special Award at the 78th Cannes International Film Festival, supported by Dawa, demonstrated this capability. Its virtual production volume (~10%) marked a "historic breakthrough," vastly exceeding the typical 1-3% in theatrical films. This proves Dawa's solutions meet cinema's highest standards while empowering diverse content formats.

Lists of movie productions and event projects that Dawa has participated in. (Photo/DENG Nan)

Dawa challenges perceptions limiting virtual production to fantasy genres. "We execute numerous realistic projects," Danny noted. A breakthrough involved solving complex water scenes indoors for an upcoming S+ series. Traditional location shooting (requiring 15-30 days for stable conditions) was completed in just 5 days using Dawa's virtual stage, ensuring consistency and quality control.

Applying AI to liberate productivity

Dawa maintains a clear strategy to address AI video generation trends: "AI's value lies in liberating human productivity, not as a disruptive force," LU asserted. He highlighted current limitations like a lack of "content value" and irreversibility, which hinder artistic control. True disruption awaits AI capable of valuable script creation—a distant prospect.

Yongchuan Technology Studio has become one of China's largest and most advanced film and television shooting bases. (Photo/DENG Nan)

Consequently, Dawa strategically integrates AI to enhance specific workflow points, increasing efficiency and output. LU confirmed "significant investment in vertical industry-specific AI models," noting AI is already ubiquitous in their operations: "Every production link utilizes AI."

Building an online platform to integrate resources

With Dawa's facilities operating at capacity in Yongchuan, the company and local government prioritize scaling beyond physical stages. The core strategy is building an online platform for the film industry.

Other cultural industry companies in Yongchuan. (Photo/DENG Nan)

This platform will automate production planning: "Upon receiving a script, Dawa intervenes immediately – handling breakdown, scene planning, digital asset matching, execution planning, and resource allocation via our expert database," Danny described. The result is a "highly efficient, accurate, and visually executable plan" for virtual stages.

The key to democratization is the Space-Aware Agent, which enables production without dedicated stages: "Short-form content or videos can be shot in standard rooms, freeing regions from large infrastructure investments and enabling scalable output," LU explained.

Hosting the SCO Film Festival provides Dawa a prime platform to demonstrate China's film technology leadership. Showcasing its virtual production expertise, strategic AI adoption, and visionary platform, Dawa signals strong potential for global collaboration, aligning with the Lead's view: "Chinese virtual production companies possess considerable international opportunities." Dawa embodies the festival's "Tech-Light" vision, illuminating the future of film production.