It’s only been over a year since we published Facial Capture 101, and the industry has already changed tremendously. With acquisitions and leaps in technology, let’s delve a little deeper and look at the most important updates in facial capture.

Motion capture tends to be done in a controlled environment – of sorts – but when it comes to sports, that turns itself on its head. Particularly for some of the most fast-paced games in the world.

Filmmaking is challenging at the best of times, but add hundreds of extras, intricate sets, and iconic locations into the mix, and those challenges can become daunting. Which was precisely the case for Indian blockbuster, RRR, directed by S. S. Rajamouli.

Performance capture for game development is one of the most powerful tools at studios’ disposal. For years, Animatrik has been helping game designers around the world build realistic, believable motion right into their work quickly and without fuss.

Learn more about how Animatrik worked with The 7 Fingers and Shocap Entertainment on the the first live multi-reality performance, taking audiences on a unique journey across music, circus, and 3D animation.

Animatrik present the four key elements that need to be consistently planned ahead of time to deliver optimal results for productions choosing performance capture shoots.

Learn more about Animatrik’s brand new partnership with NantStudios, providing a state-of-the-art motion capture stage for film, TV, and games developers in Culver City, Los Angeles. 

Motion capture can be used to create hyper-realistic and believable fight scenes. These sequences have become increasingly complex, and in bringing them to fruition productions need to understand the requirements and technology involved in putting these pieces together.

Real-time filmmaking provides the capacity to experience a performance, as you might imagine, in ‘real-time’. With insights into the recent Carry Me Home shows, learn how it can be used for interactive experiences, live broadcasts, and live-streaming events to create an immersive experience for audiences.

The lines between movies and games are blurring. This is in no small part thanks to motion capture, pushing creative boundaries. But there are still fundamental differences between the capture process for films and games. Chiefly, the realities of capturing narrative-first set-pieces versus pure movement.

In December 2022, we journeyed back into the mind of world-renowned acrobat and singer-songwriter, Didier Stowe. Incorporating circus acts and live music performance while exploring the boundaries of imagination through technology, The 7 Fingers’ latest Carry Me Home performance offered a fantastical world of exceptional technological complexity.

Digital Domain’s state-of-the-art performance and motion capture stage in Los Angeles gave space to Animatrik’s post-shoot mocap sessions for one of Marvel’s biggest blockbusters in recent years - Spiderman: No Way Home. Animatrik worked closely with the director’s team through two days of rehearsals, followed by one week of stunt work and a mix of motion and performance capture on the floor.

When you think of motion capture, typically the first image to come to mind would be an actor in a lycra suit moving around a sound stage, while a computer captures their movements. While this is a key part of the process, it neglects to mention an increasingly common aspect of motion capture - face capture.

Greg Mitchell takes us behind the scenes with one of the most famous video game franchises made on Gears of War 5, discussing the elements of motion capture and performance capture that went into making the groundbreaking video game.

The terms are often used interchangeably, but there are distinct differences between performance capture and motion capture.

Motion capture technology has been used on some of the biggest films of all time, from James Cameron’s Avatar to Avengers: Endgame - but how exactly does it work?

We sat down with Brent Breedveld, Animation Director at Relic Entertainment to discuss the mocap work for Age of Empires, his experience with Animatrik, and how it fits into the game development process. Brent’s extensive experience spans feature film and television to video games and has lead roles as both animator and VFX artist for many different titles and projects, including films like X-Men and G.I. Joe.

District 9, directed by Neill Blomkamp and produced by Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham was released on August 14, 2009. The film received an impressive collection of industry accolades, nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Visual Effects and Best Motion Picture, and reached iconic status within the sci-fi genre. This interview with Blomkamp reveals the formula to its success lies largely in the strength of the partnership between the director and Animatrik.

In November 2021, Justin Bieber partnered with the virtual entertainment company Wave to provide fans with a free and live performance, titled Justin Bieber - An Interactive Virtual Experience. Transformed into a digital avatar, Bieber performed his number one album, ‘Justice’, for the first time in the metaverse. Animatrik’s state-of-the-art technology and performance capture team tracked Bieber’s movements using cutting-edge, real-time performance capture technology – the data directly driving the singer’s CG counterpart.