Vicon had the pleasure of exhibiting at the 2024 Special Interest Group on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques (SIGGRAPH) in Denver this month. SIGGRAPH is a hugely special event for our VFX team and has hosted some of our most significant product launches, including the introduction of finger tracking to Shogun, our LBE solution and the unveiling of our real-time markerless solution, last year. This year was no less exciting, so please read on to learn more about our activities throughout the week.
Course: Advanced Practices in Optimizing Motion Capture Pipelines at SIGGRAPH 2024
On Sunday, July 28th, we hosted our first live professional development course – “Advanced Practices in Optimizing Motion Capture Pipelines for Games and VFX”. In just over three hours we covered the Vicon Shōgun VFX pipeline from beginning to end, providing an in-depth look into the intricacies of motion capture pipelines, crucial for both game development and visual effects (VFX). The course was designed to cover the entire motion capture workflow—from subject labeling and data capture, to post-processing and retargeting on custom character models – with information that would be useful to motion capture newcomers and veterans alike. We ended the session with discussion of emerging use cases, such as markerless motion capture, advanced techniques for custom workflows and multi-participant scenarios.
Myself and my co-presenter Garry Gray, (Project Lead for Shōgun), thoroughly enjoyed engaging with attendees throughout the session. We were taken aback by how thought-provoking and varied the engagements were received were, both during the course and in follow up conversations at our booth. We sincerely appreciate everyone who attended and asked questions and are currently working on plans to make this type of content available through our own platform.
Key Takeaways
Workflows – every stage matters. The best guarantee for good data is good preparation, which means ensuring that your volume is optimized for the needs of your particular shoot. A bit more time at the beginning can save you a lot of time at the end.
Innovations – Attendees learned about some of the cutting-edge technologies Vicon has introduced over the years, including optical finger tracking and how these have impacted the approaches taken by studios across the globe.
Streamlining Pipelines: The session provided valuable insights into optimizing each stage of the motion capture process, enhancing both efficiency and accuracy.
Practical Techniques: The course highlighted advanced techniques and practical advice for overcoming common challenges in motion capture workflows that can be adopted by a wide range of users.
Society for Game Cinematics (SGC) + Motion Capture Society (MCS) SIGGRAPH Mixer
Another memorable part of our time at SIGGRAPH 2024 was the annual Motion Capture Society (MCS) Mixer, with an exciting new addition of partnership with the Society for Game Cinematics (SGC). Held at Rhein Haus Denver, this event provided an excellent opportunity for networking and catching up with the community, with attendees from the game cinematics, motion capture, visual effects, gaming, and animation fields.
The mixer featured delicious food, lively conversations, and even a round of bocce ball, making it a fun and engaging experience for everyone involved. A giant thank you to SGC for organizing this year! See all the photos here.
View all 2024 MCS Mixer photos
Vicon & Anim Revolution Collaboration
SIGGRAPH 2024 saw a unique collaboration between Vicon and Anim Revolution—a collective of entertainment pioneers assembled by Brian Rausch from House of Moves. This collective included Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, Lenovo, AMD, Xencelabs Americas, CG Lumberjack, Inc, Ozone Story Tech, JALI Research Inc., and Immersive Enterprise Laboratories (IEL).
The booths were connected technically by Ethernet, but the real magic happened creatively. Two digital puppeteers, Gina Theresa Williamson from Vicon and Drew Massey, worked together to drive the character “Char.” Gina controlled Char’s body and fingers using Vicon Shōgun, while Drew managed the character’s face and features. The dynamic presentation, enhanced by Victor Manso who provided the flying platform for Char, was a crowd-pleaser, showcasing the powerful synergy of creative and technical expertise.
Retargeting
A favorite of regular visitors to Vicon’s conference booth, our session on retargeting explored the process of mapping a human performer’s skeleton onto that of a completely custom character, with different proportions and features. We demonstrated how this involves mapping each of the performer’s bones to the character’s bones and managing any additional bones in the target character’s skeleton, to avoid any unexpected movements caused by the performer’s motion.
After a calibration is completed in Shōgun Live, it is taken to Shōgun Post, where retargeting is configured. It is then bought back into Shōgun Live for real-time feedback or streamed directly into a game engine such as Unreal Engine 5. We demonstrated how this setup allows for highly accurate tracking and real-time visualization of the character, streamlining the creative process.
Explore our Shōgun softwareHigh Power Motion Capture
In this session, we shared insights on the subtleties of motion capture and its role in capturing individual movement characteristics. We highlighted Vicon’s commitment to delivering both high accuracy and speed, which is crucial for empowering creators.
Vicon’s system provides real-time, 3D-solving characters within seconds, enabling rapid iterations and supporting important creative decisions that impact the quality of the final work.
Discover our Valkyrie optical camerasVirtual Production
Our final session focused on the role of motion capture in virtual production, emphasizing how it enhances the filmmaking process. We explored how motion capture integrates into virtual environments to provide immersive and dynamic experiences, leveraging the latest technology to push creative boundaries.
Learn more about Vicon Virtual ProductionThis was another excellent SIGGRAPH and one the entire team was proud to be part of. A range of insightful presentations and demonstrations from some of the industry’s leading innovators meant every day was full of inspiration, and excitement. I’d like to once again thank everyone involved and hope to see you all again next year!
Until next time,
David “Ed” Edwards, Entertainment Project Manager
Interested in stepping into motion capture? You can reach out using the below form.
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