Cleveland Institute of Art redefines creative education with state-of-the-art Interactive Media Lab, opening Fall 2025

Cleveland Institute of Art (CIA) continues to strengthen its reputation as one of the United States’ most innovative art and design schools with the construction of a new Interactive Media Lab (IML) in the city’s MidTown Collaboration Center. The facility boasts a 36-foot LED Volume with a recessed LED floor, designed and installed by Disguise Services in close partnership with The Studio–B&H, CIA's long-term provider of technology. 

Sitting at the heart of Cleveland’s creative community, the IML will further boost the city’s booming arts scene, as well as provide significant new opportunities to students at the college. The IML features a wide range of creative labs and studios, including an interactive gallery, gaming arcade, VR screening center, digital-capture studio, rapid-prototyping lab, recording studio, and flexible testing space—all designed to give students hands-on experience across emerging media, technology, and design disciplines.

“The IML is focused on the next generation of art and design education,” says Matthew McKenna, Associate Vice President of Information Systems and Technology at Cleveland Institute of Art. “As we have done for more than 140 years, we will continue to educate students for jobs that might not yet exist.”

Among the technology offered at the IML is a sprawling LED volume that’s 36 feet wide and 16 feet high. The LED volume is central to a high-spec studio that will allow students to follow the same workflows as those behind innovative film and television projects such as Top Gun: Maverick and Daddio.

“The XR Studio opens up a transformative space for students to experiment with the future of storytelling,” says Jeff Simonetta, an assistant professor in CIA's Animation program. “Virtual production is rapidly reshaping film, animation, live events and even immersive installations—industries that increasingly rely on real-time environments and digital workflows. By integrating this technology, CIA is positioning students at the forefront of an emerging field, giving them hands-on experience with tools that are already redefining how content is made.”

Standing two stories high, the LED volume features a recessed floor that sits flush with the surrounding surface and is powered by Disguise’s VX4+, GX3, and five RX III servers. Equipped with an OptiTrack tracking system and a RED Komodo X camera, the stage enables real-time camera tracking for immersive, final-pixel production. Disguise’s technical services team led the system design and integration, collaborating closely with architects, the construction team, and CIA stakeholders to bring the XR stage to life.

The vision began taking shape at the annual National Association of Broadcasters Show (NAB), where CIA first connected with The Studio–B&H. With the school’s goals in mind, the B&H team brought in Disguise Services as a technical partner to lead the design, installation, and integration of the stage. After a competitive RFP process, a joint proposal between the two was selected. The proposal drew on Disguise’s extensive experience supporting higher education institutions, including system integrations at both Savannah College of Art and Design campuses in Georgia, alongside CIA’s long-standing relationship with B&H. Together, they formed a trusted partnership capable of guiding the project from concept to completion. 

From digital to physical and back again, CIA’s XR Studio is supported by other spaces within the IML. These spaces include the Digital Capture Studio, where 3D scanners and photogrammetry gear help convert real-world objects into virtual assets for on-screen use, and the Rapid Prototyping Lab, which allows students to fabricate props or set pieces designed for use within virtual production environments. 

Other IML spaces create a well-rounded environment for hands-on learning, experimentation, and immersive media exploration. “For CIA’s Animation and Game Design students, the IML studios open up new pipelines for creating characters, environments and experiences,” Simonetta says. “Capabilities like motion-capture, 3D scanning and VR/AR allow students to prototype and animate in real time. At the same time, our sound recording, editing suites and arcade space support the full development cycle—from concept to polished, playable or viewable work. It’s a space built for next-gen storytellers, influencers and creators.”

While the IML is currently operating in an early-access phase, it’s already shaping the future of learning at CIA. In the lead-up to the fall semester, the IML has enabled the launch of a new academic minor in Virtual + Augmented Reality, giving students hands-on access to emerging production technologies. 

CIA’s annual Curricular Innovation Award is also funding the development of a Virtual Production course, and this summer, students and faculty from the Animation, Game Design, and Industrial Design programs are using the LED volume to produce a short film, Operation Blast-Off!, showcasing the studio’s capabilities. 

As part of the MidTown Collaboration Center, the IML is designed for shared innovation, and its formal opening this fall will mark the beginning of expanded student use and robust community programming.

“The IML will serve as a nexus for the Cleveland creative community,” McKenna says. “We intend to hold open houses and regular meetings for creative professional organizations, and the IML can be rented by creatives outside of CIA. In addition, we envision creative technology companies using the IML to host product demos in the space.”

For both McKenna and his team, the project is about more than just building upon the CIA’s long history of innovation, it’s about offering students the chance to get essential hands-on experience with state-of-the-art technology that will define the output of creative industries for years to come.

“By focusing on combining timeless skills, such as creativity, with the next generation of tools,” McKenna says, “students will leave CIA prepared for the future.”