With all of the exposure that 'Avatar' is bringing to virtual production in terms of both performance capture of actors and virtual camera systems, some of you may be wondering where you could turn to bring some of those technological advances into your own projects. For virtual camera systems, one answer comes from Gamecaster.
They have a system that allows a camera operator to film a virtual scene real time in Maya, for example, by manipulating a physical camera setup and viewing the virtual scene on the LCD viewfinder. This means you can pan, tilt, zoom, dolly, crane, etc. or operate the camera hand-held in a natural, physical way. All that motion is translated into the virtual camera in the scene. You can then continue to work with the scene in Maya as you normally would. Although running Maya in real time requires using lighter proxy models, these can be replaced after the camera performance is complete. Here is an example from the Gamecaster website.
This is the same technology that Autodesk referred to in their recent whitepaper on Virtual Production (see my earlier blog entry on this). Sparked by that publication, Twenty One Inc is nurturing a relationship with Gamecaster, and I am now a member of their Advisory Board. I greatly look forward to the advances in this area, as the technology of virtual production and the artistry of filmmaking come closer and closer together.
These cross-over points between live-action and CG are particularly interesting not just because of the clear efficiencies gained and new frontiers opened, but because they bring more opportunities for strong visual storytelling. Films like 'Surf's Up' showed how much room there is for live-action-style documentary filmmaking in animation. The filmmakers used virtual camera systems to achieve that organic, hand-held look. 'Avatar' could not have been accomplished without these kinds of technologies and processes.
Advancements such as virtual camera systems and virtual production also help bridge the gap between directors that come from live-action and want to create a film using animation and directors that come from animation that want to move into live-action. These media have much to offer one another, and the line between them blurs more daily. In the end, hopefully, we will all be focused on putting the best stories on-screen in the most appropriate medium for the story.
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