Motion capture studio underlines Amersham and Wycombe College’s commitment to the skilled workforce of the future

7 March 2007: Amersham & Wycombe College of Further Education has announced the opening of a fully-operational motion capture studio, equipped with cameras from Vicon, the developer of Academy Award®-winning motion capture technology and a division of Oxford Metrics Group plc (OMG).

The announcement follows the prestigious Centre of Vocational Excellence (CoVE) status being awarded to the College last year by the Learning and Skills Council. The CoVE award recognises the commitment of Amersham & Wycombe College to being one of the UK’s leading centres for training in all aspects of the digital arts, design and media, and was the result of an initial investment of more than £1.5 million by the College.

There are nine Vicon MX cameras installed in the College’s new motion capture studio, which complements facilities that include a purpose built green screen, a multi-camera TV studio, and 5.1 surround sound audio editing facilities. The College also offers 3D Studio Max, MotionBuilder and SoftImage Xsi for modelling and will composite using Apple Shake, as well as having the ability to edit on all common platforms, such as Apple Final Cut Studio, Adobe Premiere, and Avid.

Stephen Partridge, Head of School for Media at Amersham & Wycombe College, said the motion capture studio will be at the forefront of this commitment to developing a highly capable workforce equipped with the skills for an emerging market. “The equipment we’ve got, and the content of our courses, are a direct result of feedback and advice we’ve had from businesses in the digital arts industry. Our students are very excited at the prospect of working with the studio and, in time, becoming experts in motion capture. We’re already seeing interest from potential employers at this early stage and we’re really looking forward to seeing the students grow and develop in this vibrant new field of the digital arts industry.”

The motion capture studio will be used by National Diploma eMedia students at FE level (16-18 years old), and at HE level (18+) by students on the Foundation Degree in Animation and Special Effects. These students will, in turn, be working on projects with National Diploma Media (Moving Image) students as well as those on the Foundation degree in Television Production.

The total number of students with hands-on use will be approximately 90 in the first year of the foundation degree (2007-08), and around 110 to 120 thereafter. There are currently 70 FE students who regularly use the system. There will be approximately 80 to 90 additional Foundation Degree in Television Production and National Diploma Media (Moving Image) students working on projects that will indirectly benefit from the motion capture studio.

In time, the students will take on projects from a range of businesses with a commercial requirement for motion capture skills.

Nick Bolton, chief executive of Oxford Metrics Group, which owns Vicon, said: “There simply aren’t enough talented artists in the computer-generated (CG) animation world, which is why the work of Amersham & Wycombe College is so vital. Vicon is a UK company and is the world leader in motion capture systems, I am delighted that we are helping this visionary College to develop future generations of CG artists, keeping the UK at the fore in this important sector.”

About Oxford Metrics Group
Oxford Metrics Group plc (LSE: OMG) is a group of technology companies which produce image understanding solutions for the entertainment, defence, life science and engineering industries. Be it for capturing the movements of actors (for the movie industry), sportsmen (for video games or improving team performance), children with cerebral palsy, rehab patients and animals (for medical, life science and research industries) or virtual reality displays (for engineering and development), the Group has the world leading market position and a strong international reputation for precision instruments.

Founded in 1984, the Group’s headquarters are in Oxford, UK, and has offices in California and Colorado, USA. It has customers in over 35 countries and is a quoted company listed on AIM, a market operated by the London Stock Exchange. The Group trades through two core operating subsidiaries – Vicon, the world’s biggest motion capture and movement analysis company and 2d3, a manufacturer of specialised visual effects software.

Oxford Metrics’ global clients in science, medicine, sport, engineering, gaming, film and broadcast include major hospitals and research facilities such as Guy's Hospital, Nuffield Orthopaedic and Loughborough University, engineering industry leaders including Ford Motor Company, BMW, Airbus, Caterpillar, and Toyota, and in the entertainment sector, Sony, Industrial Light and Magic, The Moving Picture Company (MPC), Sega, Nintendo, UbiSoft, EA, Square Enix and many others.

For more information about Oxford Metrics and its subsidiaries, visit www.omg3d.com, www.vicon.com, or www.2d3.com