Siggraph

VICON, developer of Academy Award-winning motion capture systems and a division of OMG plc, Oxford Metrics Group, announced a technology alliance with San Francisco-based Mova, which is debuting the new Mova Contour Reality Capture system in booth #1027 at SIGGRAPH 2006. Contour is a system that allows markerless motion capture to be recorded with sub-millimeter precision using a combination of specialized phosphorescent make-up, digital cameras, customized fluorescent strobe lighting and proprietary software.

Through a collaboration between Mova and VICON, Contour was designed to work seamlessly with the VICON MX-series cameras, enabling the two systems to capture simultaneously in a single session. VICON has been Mova’s motion capture equipment of choice from the get-go, and the facility’s 4,000 square-foot stage now boasts 24 VICON MX40 cameras at the core of its motion capture production pipeline.

“Contour was designed from the ground-up to work seamlessly with the Vicon MX40 system, allowing both systems be used simultaneously in a capture session while maintaining the highest levels of quality and precision,” said Steve Perlman, Founder and President of Mova. “We are really excited about entering this market with the support of VICON and look forward to collaborating with them more closely as we extend development of our Contour Reality Capture system.”

“Mova and Steve Perlman, who also runs Mova’s parent company Rearden LLC, have a long history of innovation in entertainment technology, and the development of Contour is no exception,” said Brian Nilles, CEO, VICON US. “The innovation by the team at Mova is quickly coalescing into the most profound improvement in CG facial animation since our own MX40 camera. For CG animation that requires both the performer and CG character to be the same, the Mova Contour system should provide a clear and significant step toward the holy grail of a photorealistic final product. We are proud to be both collaborator, and integrator for Mova’s work with the VICON system.”

Mova Contour employs two separate-yet-synchronized camera systems to simultaneously record visual and geometric information of the subject. These two sets of data are combined to result in a high-resolution 3-D digital image. With this innovative, markerless, optics-based process, every subtle detail of a human performance (from an arching eyebrow to widening eyes to a sly smile) is recorded in real time, offering directors and producers a level of creative control that has never existed before. In

essence, Contour ties together the traditional world of cinematography with digital computer animation, expanding the possibilities for both motion picture and video game makers.