Film making is so much more than just acting and directing. If you take time to look at the credits at the end of any film, you will see lists of people who have had a role in the creation of a work. You most likely are not even aware of what goes on behind the scenes. That is where the magic happens. We went along to Shepperton Studios to meet a company behind much of that magic. Centroid is a motion capture company.
Their website asks “Do you need to capture a hulking creature capable of destroying continents? Looking to power the army of Undead on an apocalyptic march?” Yes these days pretty much anything is possible, so it seems!
So what do Centroid do? Well, I am not going to get all technical on you (that would be beyond me!) but here are some examples which will illustrate the ‘magic’ you will have seen in films and games. ‘Avatar’ was one of the forerunners of films using Motion Capture. The CGI characters were based on recorded human movement. That is why characters seem so real and not like cartoon characters.
Think also Gollum in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. His character was based on the movements of actor Andy Serkis. If you have seen a “making of” you will have seen Serkis wearing a specially made suit with dots. He was recorded making a great series of movements, by hundreds of cameras mounted 360 degrees around a studio. Those movements were recorded as code which was then layered onto a character to make it move in a realistic fashion.
Motion capture, or Mocap, as it is known, was initially used in video games. Those of you who play will know how far they have come in creating a virtually realistic environments with characters moving as if they were filmed. Have you ever wondered how those movements were achieved? Now you know. It can be a painstaking process and has been known to take a full day to shoot a 5 second shot for a film. Incredible!
How about some of those fantasy characters like the Tharks and Thoats in the film ‘John Carter’. The movement of these fantastical beasts was based on the movements of camels. Isn’t that mad! Andy Serkis wore a suit for motion capture. So what about the camels?…They wore a suit too! Camels in suits!!! Dogs and horses have also had the same treatment. It is mind boggling. But the technology behind it is more incredible still.
Computer generated imaging (CGI) is also used as a cost saving device in crowd scenes. Remember the opening scene to ‘Spectre’, the latest James Bond? The Mexican square may have had a crowd of 1000 extras, but was populated many times over by CGI people.
Actors are of course also sometimes replaced by stuntmen and what is termed a digi-double in a truly dangerous scene where it is better not to risk the life of the talent.
There is clearly a lot of motion capture which we would never even notice. The whole point is though, as Facility Manager, Iain Silvester explained “it is only bad if you notice it”. As viewers, we want to suspend any disbelief and get lost in the magic.
If you read this and want a career in film, you might be wondering would a company might look for? Do you have an interest in film, have you made films or animation have you explored VFX and coding? Studio manager Stu Haskayne told me his role at Centroid is the best job he has had but warns that it is hard work. 12 hour days are not unusual on shoots but the work is satisfying and every day is different.
The enthusiasm was palpable when I was there and I will never look at films in the same way after my visit. I will be certainly be looking out for possible camel movements in any mythical creatures in fantasy films!
If you are interested in more, see website for details and watch the Vimeo channel for examples of mocap: www.centroid3d.com