s e p t e m b e r . o c t o b e r 2 0 1 7 c g w 1 9
Moving Forward
Motion-capture technology continues to advance
It seems like only yesterday when studios
debated the merits of using motion cap-
ture to animate characters. The question
really wasn't whether the results were
realistic. Rather, the discussion focused
on the time and effort required to set
up a system and calibrate it for usage,
and then the time and effort needed to
process and clean up the data. And then
there was the cost of a mocap system.
Those issues are far less of a concern
today with the advanced technology
that's available for studios of all sizes and
the pricing models that make it afford-
able for almost any size facility.
Indeed, there are many modes of
motion capture that span many genres,
from entertainment applications such
games and films, to science and re-
search. Likewise, mocap can be accom-
plished using a number of methods, each
with its own strengths and weaknesses.
Current technology has moved beyond
simply capturing an actor's walk cycle
to one that captures an actor's perfor-
mance, and no film series encompasses
this evolution more than Planet of the
Apes. In a short time span, Weta Digital
developed groundbreaking mocap
methods for the rebooted Planet of the
Apes (2011), developed a mobile per-
formance-capture system for the harsh
locations and weather for Dawn (2014),
and then created a more complex
system for War's (2017) extreme
outdoor conditions.
In fact, just in the past several months,
we have seen a range of groundbreaking
motion-capture applications, including
the Royal Shakespeare Company's stage
production of "The Tempest," morphing
the character Ariel into various forms on
stage in front of audiences in real time.
Another stunning application can be
found in Ninja Theory's video game Hell-
blade, which blurs the line between game
and film production thanks to the use of
real-time motion capture. And, for the
Oscar-winning Jungle Book feature film,
live- action cameras and objects were
tracked with a massive motion-capture
system to measure position and orienta-
tion so the artists could accurately add
backgrounds, animals, and other
CG elements.
VR is also leveraging mocap, from
head-mounted displays to large-scale VR
arcades a la what one vendor calls "the
warehouse model."
As the industry's needs change, the
mocap vendors are tuning their tech-
nology to offer better systems for less
money to meet these new demands.