CAPTURE ANY PERFORMANCE AT EVERY STAGE OF PRODUCTION WITH SHŌGUN
Optical and Markerless Motion Capture Software for VFX, Virtual Production and Game Development.
Modern VFX, virtual production and game development require real-time motion capture data — of the highest quality.
Shōgun software — Live, Markerless and Post, empowers studios of any size to capture the highest quality motion data whilst allowing them to test, visualize, capture and optimize performances for maximum impact and efficiency.
Shōgun allows both cameras and full-body subjects to be tracked at the same time, making use of optimized tracking profiles for both. This includes high-fidelity finger animation and robust occlusion fixing when capturing the most complex moves and the highest quality optical motion data.
Creative teams can now easily rehearse, block and develop their character performances during pre-production and previs by capturing unmarked performers and marked props with new markerless full-body tracking.
Whether capturing with optical or markerless, characters can be re-targeted within Shōgun and streamed directly into your favourite animation software or game engine. Shōgun supports the latest technology innovations, including EPIC’s new Metahuman project.
Download ShògunReal-time optical motion capture powerhouse for the most accurate, precise and high-quality motion data.
Maximize creative iteration from early ideation to previs and rapid prototyping with real-time machine learning powered markerless mocap.
Multi-purpose VFX workhorse focusing on post-production flexibility and camera tracking.
Designed for creative professionals who focus on pushing the boundaries of visual effects and animation, Shōgun is built on 40 years of motion capture expertise with users across some of the biggest names in the entertainment space across multiple applications. Enhanced further with the addition of markerless, creative professionals can now instantly visualise ideas for better creative early on.
From blockbuster franchises at Disney, Pixar, Dimension, and ILM to innovative indie studios, Shōgun provides creative professionals with the ability to create compelling visual narratives with lifelike character movements.
Leading game developers such as Epic Games, Gearbox, Ubisoft, EA, and Square Enix trust Shōgun to deliver high-fidelity character animation and immersive gameplay experiences across a range of games and experiences.
Universities across the globe specialising in film and game departments, including USC, NYU, and Savannah College of Art & Design, rely on Shōgun to empower the next generation of digital creators with industry-standard technology.
Industry experts like House of Moves and Imaginarium rely on Shōgun to efficiently deliver the best quality services to their clients.
This is where Shōgun predicts where markers would be. This is useful when a marker is lost on set, there are multiple people in one area close together, or if an item comes between cameras and the subject, as in, they go under a table. This means a better solve, inclusions, and all in real-time.
Easily calibrate any film camera that supports SDI along with timecode and sync. This calculates the center of the lens or nodal point so the perspective is correct when the camera moves. We have tested this with the Sony Venice, Blackmagic Ursa, Red Komodo and Arri Alexa Mini LF.
The Virtual Camera rig is designed to support a number of different configurations and allows the user to view the game engine using a tablet device. Bespoke 3d printed stalks allow for high quality object tracking all the way to the edges of the volume. It’s lightweight and completely wireless, allowing you to frame shots and create creative camera moves either during the shoot or as an additional camera pass once the main shoot is complete.
Shōgun supports all all current Vicon motion capture cameras. You can also run Vantage and Vero cameras strobless. This allows for you to capture in complex environments filled with smoke and FX and even capture outside. Alongside traditional passive markers you can also use active markers like the Vicon Nova or solutions from Technoprops or Standard Deviation.
By placing tracking markers on the camera you can create a connection between the markers and the camera so that when you move the film camera the virtual camera moves with it. This allows for a sub pixel accurate overlay of the CG layer on top of the film plate. This overlay can be viewed in Shōgun or directly in the game engine.
The calibrated lens can be exported to the game engine as an ST map. This can then be used when compositing and allows for the overlay to be replicated in the virtual camera view. Multiple different lens points can be calculated allowing for changes in Focus, Iris and Zoom. These can then be linked in the engine and dynamically blended between using a separate lens encoder.
Shōgun allows for both cameras and fullbody subjects to be tracked at the same time making use of optimized tracking profiles for both. This includes high fidelity finger animation and robust occlusion fixing when capturing the most complex moves. These characters can be retargeted within Shōgun and streamed directly into the game engine. This supports EPIC’s new Metahuman project as an example.
Expanding on the ability to quickly calibrate a single SDI camera if the intrinsic or tracking object has moved, the ability to calibrate or recalibrate multiple selected SDI or optical cameras has been introduced for a time-efficient and intrusion-free process on stage. Any cameras not selected are locked and the global co-ordinate system is maintained.
Character retargeting continues to be a critical component in many VFX pipelines, regularly utilized in games and movies alike. We have introduced the ability to automate large parts of the retargeting setup process, enabling our users to setup sides and parts, and create constraints with single button clicks. Retargeting your performance data to a unique character is now quicker than ever.
Live calibration produces reliable results for accurate labeling and can produce a high quality solve ready for direct real-time previsualization or retargeting. Auto-Skeleton allows the user to intervene and have greater control over the solving subject as a post-processed alternative to the Live calibrated solve. The solving subject can be reimported into Shōgun Live so that you can use this for real-time and also capture of processed data.
FLIR cameras – Integrate up to two FLIR cameras into your Vicon Shogun system with up to 50 optical cameras, allowing synchronized video footage at up to 120 fps, which can be reviewed and exported in MOV format for 3D apps like Maya and MotionBuilder.
Track multiple performers without suits and markers. Markerless if powered by machine learning trained on human motion capture data and mature proprietary solving algorithms refined over many years.
Current release version | Windows 11 | Windows 10 | Windows 7 | Linux | OSX |
Shōgun 1.11 | 64 bit | 64 bit | x | x | x |
Nexus 2.16 | 64 bit | 64 bit | x | x | x |
Evoke 1.7.0 | 64 bit | 64 bit | x | x | x |
Tracker 4.1.0 | 64 bit | 64 bit | x | x | x |
Polygon 4.4.6 | 64 bit | 64 bit | x | x | x |
Capture.U Desktop 1.3.1 | 64 bit | 64 bit | x | x | 10.12 |
CaraLive 1.3.0 | 64 bit | 64 bit | 64 bit * | x | x |
CaraPost 1.2.0 | 64 bit | 64 bit | 64 bit* | x | x |
Pegasus 1.2.2 | 64 bit | 64 bit | 64 bit* | x | x |
ProCalc 1.6.1 | 64 bit | 64 bit | x | x | x |
ProEclipse 1.5.0 | 64 bit | 64 bit | x | x | x |
DataStream SDK 1.12.0 | 64 bit | 64 bit | x | 64 bit | 10.11 |
Bodybuilder 3.6.4 | 64 bit | 64 bit | x | x | x |
Nexus Insight 1.0.0 | 64 bit | 64 bit | x | x | x |
Please do note:
Shogun Live and Post 1.15
FLIR drivers added directly to the installer
Shogun Markerless and Post 1.15
Shogun_1.14.0
Shogun_1.13.1
User preference added to prevent camera temperature update requests during camera calibration.
Post no longer crashes on startup when the PC’s region is set to one that swaps commas for decimals.
Shogun_1.13.0
Subject Calibration panel improvements
Updated support for 4 x FLIR Blackfly video cameras
Shogun_1.12.0
Shogun_1.11.0
Shogun_1.10.0
Shogun_1.9.0
Shogun_1.8.0
Shogun_1.7.0
Shogun_1.6.0
Shogun_1.5.2
Shogun_1.5.1
Shogun_1.5.0
Shogun_1.4.0
Shogun_Post_1.3.1
This is an updated version of Shogun Post only which fixes a number of small bugs found since release. Please use the next link to download Shogun Live 1.3 if you haven’t already.
· Fixed issue with video converter producing black videos
· Fixed pre-rotation values getting replaced as part of “Prep Unused Bones”
· Timeline playback now starts from correct frame
· Camera view filters now match Live
· Can now use Xray mode in camera view
· Drop fixing now works with the new finger skeletons
· Frame selection now works with cameras
· Added scrollbar to the pipeline editor
· Marker editing panel now scales correctly
· Improved static mesh manipulation
· Fixed a crash importing certain x2d files
· Fixed crash when changing retarget scale
Thank you for choosing Shogun for your motion capture pipeline.
Shogun_1.3.0
Abstract
Vicon Shōgun is a new motion capture software platform for entertainment users that introduces an exciting new set of innovative features unique to Vicon. Shōgun’s new feature set will change the way you work by improving efficiency at each stage of the motion capture workflow, saving you time and delivering the highest quality data in record time. Shōgun supersedes the current industry-leading Vicon Blade software. The Shōgun platform consists of two executables: Shōgun Live and Shōgun Post.
Shōgun allows you to do more than ever possible before in Live. Our new software allows you to calibrate your subject in Live; monitor your camera health frame by frame; see a step change in labeling and solving quality; provides a functional and scaled subject mesh; overlays 3D and calibrated video; directly streams to game engines; all while writing your real-time data directly to disk. Load data into Post in seconds, address issues in a file automatically as it loads, see the overall quality of data presented on your time bar, then make use of the most powerful tools in mocap to polish your take.
The latest release of Shōgun Live & Post includes the following new features.
LIVE
POST
Shogun _1.2.1
Abstract
File Name: Shogun_1.2.1.109386h_x64.zip
Shōgun 1.2.1 includes a number of bug fixes and adds the ability to control Live Subject Calibration using the Live API.
Fixes include:
Shōgun Live:
Shōgun Post:
Requirements
N.B. – The licensing system for Shōgun differs from Blade and other Vicon software applications. Although there are two executables (Live and Post) there will only be one licence type = Shōgun (as opposed to Shogun Live and Shōgun Post). Shōgun Post is seat-licensed and requires one free seat of Shogun per instance of the software that is desired to be used simultaneously. Shōgun Live however uses a new ‘catch and release’ concept. Shōgun Live does perform a licence check during launch and must find a valid Shōgun licence, but does not ‘check out’ this licence.
Shogun _1.2.0
Abstract
File Name: Shogun_1.2.0.108131h_x64.zip
Shōgun 1.2 introduces a number of new features including
Live:
Custom skeleton support in Shōgun. SDI video support. Prop mesh with manipulator in Live. Vue and SDI video is now part of MCP Review. Live subject calibration feedback. Camera rays are now visible. Marker co-variance is now visible. Improved 3D overlay with opacity slider. Reload Subject button. Removed the idea of Y/Z up in Shogun.
Post:
Offline subject calibration. Brighten video files as part of your batching in Shōgun Post. Batch export video files as image sequences in Shōgun Post. Print timecode to videos in Shōgun Post. Zoom the Shōgun Post time bar and easily set range handles. Populate updated subjects across MCP files via batching. Ability to set primary selection color and improved visual representation.
275 bug fixes including: Improved finger-solving using new subject models. Workspace axis is larger and off to the side. Origin in clearly marked on the grid. Improved alias folder management. Improved booting during subject calibration. ExportFBX.hsl no longer has the wrong defaults. Exporting subjects to a folder now only requires one click and defaults to the Subjects folder. Removed ‘Keep existing labels’ dialog when removing a subject. Aligned workspace menu in Live and Post. Added a warning window when modifying joint lengths in Post. Added option to remove single frame trajectories from MCP files.
Requirements
N.B. – The licensing system for Shōgun differs from Blade and other Vicon software applications. Although there are two executables (Live and Post) there will only be one licence type = Shōgun (as opposed to Shogun Live and Shōgun Post). Shōgun Post is seat-licensed and requires one free seat of Shogun per instance of the software that is desired to be used simultaneously. Shōgun Live however uses a new ‘catch and release’ concept. Shōgun Live does perform a licence check during launch and must find a valid Shōgun licence, but does not ‘check out’ this licence.
Shogun _1.1.0
Abstract
File Name: ShogunLive 1.1.0.103309h.zip
Shogun 1.1 introduces a number of new features in LIVE and POST.
LIVE:
POST:
Shōgun 1.1.0 Features
Along with a series of addressed issues
Live:
Post:
Vicon Shogun – Final Quality Skeletal Data by Day’s End. Vicon Shogun is a new motion capture software platform for entertainment users that introduces an exciting new set of innovative features unique to Vicon. Shogun’s new feature set will change the way you work by improving efficiency at each stage of the motion capture workflow, saving you time and delivering the highest quality data in record time. Shogun supersedes the current industry-leading Vicon Blade software. The Shogun platform consists of two executables: Shogun Live and Shogun Post. Shogun allows you to do more than ever possible before in Live. Our new software allows you to:
Requirements
Shogun _1.0.1
Abstract
File Name: Shogun_1.0.1.101150h.zip
Shogun 1.0.1 fixes a number of bugs including
LIVE: Subject calibration being slow when lots of clusters are in the system Labeling Cluster Mode is off by default and now warns the user when it’s active. This improves subject labeling performance. Markers in the data stream now have occlusion fixing turned on.
POST: Improved object interaction in the 3D workspace. Fixed crash when importing in FBX files getLastFile HSL now returns correct value
Vicon Shogun – Final Quality Skeletal Data by Day’s End. Vicon Shogun is a new motion capture software platform for entertainment users that introduces an exciting new set of innovative features unique to Vicon. Shogun’s new feature set will change the way you work by improving efficiency at each stage of the motion capture workflow, saving you time and delivering the highest quality data in record time. Shogun supersedes the current industry-leading Vicon Blade software. The Shogun platform consists of two executables: Shogun Live and Shogun Post. Shogun allows you to do more than ever possible before in Live. Our new software allows you to calibrate your subject in Live; monitor your camera health frame by frame; see a step change in labelling and solving quality; provides a functional and scaled subject mesh; overlays 3D and calibrated video; directly streams to game engines; all while writing your real-time data directly to disk. Load data into Post in seconds, address issues in a file automatically as it loads, see the overall quality of data presented on your time bar, then make use of the most powerful tools in mocap to polish your take.
Highlighted Features:
A New Streamlined GUI Live Subject Calibration Scaled Subject Mesh with Video Overlay Unbreakable Solving Camera Health Monitoring and Recovery Write Real Time to Disk Drag and Drop to Post Direct Game Engine Streaming Data Health Time Bar
Requirements
Shōgun 1.0 SafeNet License
Shogun _1.0.0
Abstract
File Name: Shogun_1.0.0.100110h_x64.zip
Vicon Shōgun – Final Quality Skeletal Data by Day’s End.
Vicon Shōgun is a new motion capture software platform for entertainment users that introduces an exciting new set of innovative features unique to Vicon. Shōgun’s new feature set will change the way you work by improving efficiency at each stage of the motion capture workflow, saving you time and delivering the highest quality data in record time. Shōgun supersedes the current industry-leading Vicon Blade software. The Shōgun platform consists of two executables: Shōgun Live and Shōgun Post.
Shōgun allows you to do more than ever possible before in Live. Our new software allows you to calibrate your subject in Live; monitor your camera health frame by frame; see a step change in labeling and solving quality; provides a functional and scaled subject mesh; overlays 3D and calibrated video; directly streams to game engines; all while writing your real-time data directly to disk. Load data into Post in seconds, address issues in a file automatically as it loads, see the overall quality of data presented on your time bar, then make use of the most powerful tools in mocap to polish your take.
Highlighted Features:
A New Streamlined GUI Live Subject Calibration Scaled Subject Mesh with Video Overlay Unbreakable Solving Camera Health Monitoring and Recovery Write Real Time to Disk Drag and Drop to Post Direct Game Engine Streaming Data Health Time Bar
Requirements
Shōgun 1.0 SafeNet License
Shogun Live
FLIR drivers added directly to the installer
You can find the latest documentation for all current versions of software here:
Vicon Core Software will also install documentation/help guide when you install the software.
Once installed, launch the software and select Help > View Installed Help
The following software will install Help:
Nexus 2, Shōgun, Tracker 3, Blade 3, Pegasus, CaraLive, CaraPost, Polygon 4
If the cameras continue to connect with the previous version of software but don’t in the latest version then the software is probably being blocked by the Windows Defender Firewall. Although Vicon officially specifies that the Firewall should be turned off completely to ensure unobstructed communication with the cameras and connectivity devices, sometimes institutional protocols mandate it to be turned on. If this is the case:
If this does not resolve the issue then please contact Vicon Support.