On March 12 this year, the airborne "Avatar" was officially re-screened in China, setting off a wave of memory killing, and also fired the first cannon for "Avatar 2: The Way of Water".
Avatar was epoch-making for CG film, setting off a 3D movie boom almost single-handedly and dominating 3D movies in the 2010s, where motion capture technology used in movies was unprecedented.
"Avatar" special effects analysis
Motion capture
"Assassination of a Novelist" also uses a similar technology, Motion Capture (English: Motion Capture) uses external equipment to record and restore the displacement and posture of the human body structure.
Nowadays, it is successfully used in virtual reality, gaming, ergonomic research, simulation training, film and television CG, biomechanical research and many other aspects.
From a technical point of view, the essence of motion capture is to measure, track, and record the trajectory of an object in three-dimensional space, a typical motion capture device. It is generally composed of the following parts: sensors, signal capture devices, data transmission devices and data processing equipment.
Avatar actors wear special helmets (shooting equipment) and these devices are fine when the actors perform
Accurately capture the expression of the actor, the demeanor is transmitted to the face of the virtual character through the calculation of AI, so that the character model and the actor are integrated, and the lifelike CG character appears in front of us.
Simulcam technology with CG animation
Simulcam's technical cameras can follow or monitor virtual characters created with "motion capture" technology and instantly synthesize them into a live performance environment, that is, CG characters and environments are presented at the same time.
In addition, it allows producers to intuitively see what the virtual background looks like in the live performance shots, avoiding unnatural situations in the film's results! Kashin uses this way to create a virtual world that can more intuitively see the results of motion capture.
FACS (Facial Behavior Coding System)
Many people may be very unfamiliar with this, in fact, for the industry to contact animation should be familiar with things, FACS refers to the different facial muscle movements and different expressions of the correspondence.
FACS is the definitive reference standard for muscle movement of facial expressions today, used by psychologists and cartoonists.
The detail of the card god death buckle is that this facial expression must conform to THE FACS to avoid the "uncanny valley effect".
So what surprises did Kashin bring to us in Avatar 2: The Way of Water? Take a peek at Avatar 2: The Water's latest concept art and behind-the-scenes graphics:
Latest concept art for Avatar 2: The Water's Path
Behind the scenes of Avatar 2: The Water's Path
Cameron said: "It looks like we're in a submarine, but it's actually on the deck of the helicopter we saw in the first film. ”
In the more complex scenes of the film, Cameron hired underwater dance and gymnastics professionals to shoot for the actors. These gymnasts can move gracefully and skillfully in the water without creating any bubbles that interfere with motion capture technology.
While motion capture has been used in films like The Lord of the Rings and Pirates of the Caribbean, Avatar takes the technology to a whole new level.
Cameron promised that the Avatar sequel would continue to drive the development of filmmaking technology, and now fans are studying how he did it.
Motion capture technology didn't initially work underwater, so Cameron and the Avatar 2 team had to upgrade and make motion capture suits and cameras to be able to accurately capture the actors' underwater performances.
Avatar 2: The Water's Way underwater setting
The film's underwater scenes were shot in a 900,000-gallon tank that simulated different ocean currents and ocean movements. Cameron said they considered alternatives to shooting in tanks and then adding water digitally, but for the film, the water didn't look real enough.
After reading these "appetizers", has the expectation value been raised and lost? "Avatar 2: The Way of Water" will be released on December 16, 2022, and we look forward to the surprises brought by Kashin
The source of this article: Tao Meng, Zhi CG Classroom