Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1533763
www.postmagazine.com 6 POST MAR/APR 2025 BITS & PIECES VICON RELEASES MARKERLESS MOTION-CAPTION SOLUTION OXFORD, UK — After years of development and an expansive beta pro- gram, Vicon has released a new, markerless motion-capture solution. The launch comes more than a year after Vicon showed a markerless prototype at SIGGRAPH 2023. The technology was beta-tested through the company's Visual Effects (VFX) Pioneer Program, giving the VFX and virtual production communities the opportunity to discover, understand and define how marker- less motion capture could be applied in their industries. Vicon Markerless reduces time to visualization, enabling rapid iteration from prototyping and previsualization to realtime animation — even with props. Creative teams can quickly explore ideas marker-free and transition efficiently to full optical motion capture when required. The release will integrate seam- lessly into existing Vicon optical motion-capture pipelines and increases team efficiency with a single ecosystem across calibration, capture and data clean- ing pipelines. Some of the beta participants that explored the markerless solution includ- ed Industrial Light & Magic, Gearbox Entertainment, Dimension|DNEG360, Dreamscape Immersive and Framestore. "The new markerless system from Vicon has significantly accelerated our creative process, enabling us to reach results faster," notes Ben Kolakovic, virtual production operations manager at Industrial Light & Magic. "We now receive mocap data much more quickly than before, which allows our artists to experiment with new ideas in a fraction of the time. This streamlined workflow not only fosters creativity, but also enhances our ability to iterate efficiently and fine-tune performances." Randy Pitchford, founder and president of Gearbox Entertainment, says the new solution provides the studio with both speed and flexibility. "Anyone of us at Gearbox, including me, can quickly jump into our Vicon markerless motion-capture volume — even in our street clothes — to quickly get the data we need as we work to bring exciting, potential future projects to life, including Borderlands." PHIPHEN STUDIOS EXPANDS POST SERVICES WITH NEW IMMERSIVE SYSTEM ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, NJ — Phiphen Studios (https://phiphenstudios.com) recently installed 11 Genelec 8330A monitors in its Dolby Atmos mix room as part of a continuing effort to deliver high-quality sound for feature films and television projects. Located in northern New Jersey, not far from New York City, Phiphen Studios serves as a turnkey production hub, with a 10,000-square- foot facility that features a 25-seat 4K grading theater, color grading suites and offline editorial rooms. The studio officially launched in 2022, and has gone on to contribute to a number of projects that were shot in New Jersey, including Daddio, starring Sean Penn and Dakota Johnson, and the upcoming feature Y2K. "We're proud to be one of the few post production facilities in New Jersey offering a full range of services," says Aldey Sanchez, managing director of Phiphen Studios. "From dailies and archival to VFX to sound to color and finish- ing and mastering, we do it all. Adding Genelec monitors to our Atmos mix room ensures that we can meet the growing demand for premium audio services." The studio took a forward-thinking approach, choosing Genelec 8330A Smart Active Monitors (www.genelec.com) for their Atmos room. "As the industry evolves, more projects are requesting Dolby Atmos capabil- ities," Sanchez explains. "Genelec was a natural choice for us because of their form factor, quality and reputation in the industry. Immersive experts came in to calibrate the system, and they were impressed with the setup." When it came to the design and installation of the Atmos system, Phiphen Studios worked closely with Skyline Finishing (previously Final Frame), to configure the room. "They served as consultants, helping us make the most of the space we had available, and we're extremely happy with the results," says Sanchez.