Sunset Studios Debuts 8,000-Sq-Ft Microdrama Set Hub
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- Sunset Studios unveiled premium standing sets on its Sunset Las Palmas Studios lot in Hollywood, purpose-built for microdrama production, with Knockout Shorts — the vertical media studio co-founded by Matthew Ko and Chris Crema — partnering on design and construction.
- The sets occupy an 8,000-square-foot soundstage and include six fully built-out environments — a courtroom, apartment, bar, restaurant, hospital, and office — each equipped with a pre-lit grid so crews can begin shooting immediately.
- Set elements are repurposed from former major studio productions, a design choice Sunset Studios cites as a sustainability benefit in addition to speeding up production.
- Sean Griffin, senior VP of sales at Sunset Studios, said the standing sets are about "removing friction from the production process," letting creators "walk onto a completely built and fully lit high-quality set and start shooting right away."
- Knockout Shorts is currently producing at least one microdrama series under SAG-AFTRA's newly established vertical media production agreement, giving the young union deal its first confirmed Hollywood-backed production.
- Sunset Studios is owned by the Hudson Pacific real estate investment trust and also operates the Quixote equipment and transportation firm, making it one of Hollywood's largest production services and facilities providers.
Why it matters: A major Hollywood infrastructure player is now building purpose-built environments for 60- to 90-second vertical microdramas, not just retrofitting traditional workflows. For creators, pre-lit ready-to-shoot sets compress setup time; for SAG-AFTRA, Knockout Shorts' active shoot under its new vertical media agreement shows the union deal is already converting major-lot production into real commitments.
