ep118 - From an $8M Exit to a Virtual Production Studio: Inside Biro Florin's New Course – CineD Focus Check
Shownotes
In this episode of Focus Check, Nino speaks with Biro Florin — entrepreneur, misfit, and founder of Masterwork Films — about his unconventional path from cosmetics and software to running a green screen virtual production studio in Brighton, UK. They also dive deep into the new Virtual Production for Beginners course now available on MZed, which Biro co-created to help filmmakers, studio owners, and virtual production engineers build their own VP setups from scratch — without the budget of a Hollywood LED volume.
🎓 Virtual Production for Beginners course on MZed:
https://www.mzed.com/courses/virtual-production-for-beginners
Chapters and Articles in This Episode
(01:19) Meet Biro Florin
(03:26) From Romania to the UK: cosmetics, software, and an $8M exit
(07:01) The "Misfit" mindset: Jexo, Masterwork Films, and entering industries sideways
(17:13) Raising investment: finding ethical investors and protecting creative control
(22:32) AI in filmmaking: the commercial shift, Cannes AI features, and what's defensible
(46:10) Pivoting to filmmaking and founding Masterwork Films
(50:55) Building a green screen VP studio on a budget
(01:05:14) Why Blackmagic cameras work best for real-time keying
(01:12:36) Blackmagic UltraKey, dynamic range, and getting a clean key
(01:12:55) Unreal Engine workflows: compositing inside vs. outside the engine
(01:15:49) Course structure, the 100-page workbook, and upcoming chapters
(01:17:40) Understanding business
🎓 Virtual Production for Beginners course on MZed:
https://www.mzed.com/courses/virtual-production-for-beginners
📖 Course overview on CineD:
📬 Email us: [email protected]