When we talk about motion capture, most of the time we discover that it requires very sophisticated equipment, going far beyond cameras and software. However, the truth is that technology is losing complexity, and with that loss new possibilities emerge. A great example is the new plugin Faceware Live for Unreal Engine 4. What does it offer? Real-time facial tracking, with just one camera in front of your face.
Do you remember those capture sessions where the actor has to cover his face with dots to be used as markers? Well, that technique is still perfectly valid among large production studios, but if someone wants to reproduce human expressions in simpler animation projects, the "budget pains" can become very large. Fortunately, the situation is changing. Tools are more powerful, costs go down, and the demand for advanced equipment is reduced. When the Kinect saw the light, it caused a real revolution in laboratory environments, since from a certain point of view it offered motion capture at a fraction of the average price. Now, it is the turn of this:
What you just saw is the combination of the Faceware Live plugin and Unreal Engine 4. The people at Faceware Technologies need no introduction, because their platforms have been used in very high-profile projects, such as GTA V, Red Dead Redemption, and Sleeping Dogs. But by working together with Epic Games, they have achieved an impressive level of integration, and I imagine that more than one developer is delighting in the possibilities. All that Faceware Live needs is one camera. Even a webcam is enough, but the more precise the system, the better the reproduction of expressions in Unreal Engine 4. Characters are no longer limited to opening and closing their mouths like puppets, but can act as much more complete "digital humans".
The development of this plugin also had the assistance of the Australian company Opaque Multimedia, whom we know for creating the Kinect 4 Unreal plugin, compatible with the second version of the sensor. The two videos were presented at the SIGGRAPH conference (ends today), and those interested in the plugin should contact directly through the official Faceware page.
