Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/65907
Animation n n n n ologically they are different from real bears, but that does not mean this technology can't stand up to a character that is more realistic," says Woods. Woods and Webb believe that real-time CG rendering such as this has the potential to be a massive game changer, if you will, for visual effects and animation. "Real-time rendering is the future and spells the end for time- and data-consuming renderfarms. The possibilities are endless," says Woods. For the Coke project, it was folks from the ad agency controlling the characters streaming directly from the Blitz engine. But with cloud gaming and remote rendering, the control could easily be shifted to fans. "It can be done now, and it's a big step up from how things like Farmville look and play at the moment," notes Woods. In fact, Woods' Framestore team is currently working on a prototype for remote rendered content so people can play with branded characters through an Internet connection and their own keyboard. "We've hardly scratched the surface in terms of what can be achieved," says Woods. Webb agrees, adding, "The interesting stuff will come from real-time characters. Film and Blitz modeled the characters and the cave, developed the technology for the engine, and created the short-beat animations, while Framestore crafted the longer, pre-rendered segments that also were fed through the engine. TV will continue to push the boundaries of CG work, but it is beginning to plateau. It is already spectacular—look at Avatar and John Carter. But they also closely match other fan- tastic movies. It is not a personal experience," he says. "Film plays all the way through and you go along for the ride. The interesting new stuff is not going along with someone else's Windows-32 / Windows-64 / OS X-32 / OS X-64 ride, but directing it yourself or adapting in response to other things happening in the world. If digital characters give appropriate re- sponses and attention to what's happening in the real world, that is massively powerful." n Karen Moltenbrey is the chief editor of Computer Graphics World. 32-bit only $399 Now with Texture Extraction, Auto-Placement, Grid Lens Calibration Use SynthE es for animated critter insertion, fixing shaky shots virtual set extensions, making 3D movies, architectural previews, accident reconstruction, virtual product placement, face and body capture, and more. Use SynthEyes forr animated critter insertion fixing shaky shots, Andersson Technologies LLC April/May 2012 23