In addition to a record box office run and four Oscar nominations, Avatar: The Path of Water brings an impressive wave of Metkayina’s next-generation technology that is sure to form the basis for motion capture, animation and underwater photography. .
The original facial mockup setup, which also allowed Andy Serkis to dive into Gollum and Caesar, was impressive and has now received a major overhaul. Not only physically, but also in the way the software reproduces performance.
“We looked at how the muscles of the face, eyes and lips are connected to each other, and created a neural network to map all the connections between them,” says Senior Visual Effects Supervisor Joe Letteri. “It gave us this sympathetic movement in our actors’ faces, which allowed us to translate the acting into the characters and make every shot more believable.”
In addition, one SD camera that records facial expressions has been replaced with two HD versions that provide more data and detail.
While documenting the underwater events, the cast and crew were trained in freediving techniques to hold their breath for extended periods of time when air bubbles interfered with performance capture. Actors wear a single camera rig to record their faces, while underwater camera operators record body movements.
In addition, the reference chambers are mounted above and below the water, creating two separate capture spaces. This allows actors to move freely underwater and on the surface without compromising their performance.
Filmmaker James Cameron detailed underwater images in 3D using the DeepX 3D professional camera invented by Australian filmmaker Pavel Aktel.
The innovative design eliminates the need for a waterproof housing around the lens to eliminate distortion and create rich and crystal-clear magic on screen.
Post time: Apr-19-2023