Eric specialises in in-game cinematics (IGC). There are 2 types of cinematic:
- Live (In Engine) procedurally rendered in real-time. This allows quick exchange and active events
- Full Motion Animations (FMA) pre-rendered in engine. allow for layering sequences, more narrative, and greater detail in shots.
The animation process is aided with motion capture technology to gather realistic movement quickly. Multiple takes are recorded with dialogue captured on stage but can be re-recorded. On Uncharted 2 ad lib was encouraged for realistic dialogue and spontaneity. Reference footage of the sessions is video'd from multiple views for reference when touching up.
This is the typical cinematic's pipeline:
This is the typical cinematic's pipeline:
- Rehearsal
- Performance Capture
- Mocap Selects
- Editing
- Camera Layout
With mocap selects the most natural performances are chosen sometimes this means splitting takes, picking the moments when characters are static or out of shot and and then swapping the footage. Storyboarding motion capture tends to constrain motion capture actors, impacting on performance so rough stage direction is the first phase of planning.
Eric mentioned a Hamish McKenzie http://www.macaronikazoo.com/, He is a brilliant rigger and general tech guy. By the sounds of it his influence was greatly appreciated on Uncharted 2, with his help a "Zoo Shots" system was set up for easily switching between multiple cameras.
The big fixes are what first need to be addressed with motion capture footage. Discontinuity in data is a major issue, tidying animation curves manually is the only fix. Mocap offsets include head direction adjustments, collar & clavicle synchronisation and body pose adjustments. Hand contact needs to be added with finger movement and IK switching, Physical Character Interaction generally needs tweaking as well.
Final Additions to the mocap data are the facial Animations, Eric's Forte. This requires a strong facial rig this is done with many many joints and a system similar to set driven keys, With fixer shapes in place the eye animation is first to be applied then the mouth animation (lip sync) and finally brow animation. A brilliant talk by Eric in all, very informative and has definitely shifted my opinion on the practicality of motion capture.
Eric mentioned a Hamish McKenzie http://www.macaronikazoo.com/, He is a brilliant rigger and general tech guy. By the sounds of it his influence was greatly appreciated on Uncharted 2, with his help a "Zoo Shots" system was set up for easily switching between multiple cameras.
The big fixes are what first need to be addressed with motion capture footage. Discontinuity in data is a major issue, tidying animation curves manually is the only fix. Mocap offsets include head direction adjustments, collar & clavicle synchronisation and body pose adjustments. Hand contact needs to be added with finger movement and IK switching, Physical Character Interaction generally needs tweaking as well.
Final Additions to the mocap data are the facial Animations, Eric's Forte. This requires a strong facial rig this is done with many many joints and a system similar to set driven keys, With fixer shapes in place the eye animation is first to be applied then the mouth animation (lip sync) and finally brow animation. A brilliant talk by Eric in all, very informative and has definitely shifted my opinion on the practicality of motion capture.
No comments:
Post a Comment