Image Metrics

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A Real Actress Driving the facial performance of a 3D avatar

Image Metrics is a 3D facial animation company headquartered in Manchester, with offices in Santa Monica. Image Metrics specializes in creating facial animation for films, video games and television using a Markerless motion capture computer animation process.

1 About
2 History
3 Credits
4 External links

[edit] About

The Image Metrics proprietary facial animation system is a Markerless motion capture method in which an actor's performance is filmed and a 3D animated model is generated directly from the raw images.The process uses pre-existing or newly recorded video of an actor’s facial performance shot with a video or High definition camera. All detail seen in the recorded video is then analyzed and mapped onto a computer-generated 3D model, including the detailed movements of teeth, tongue, lips and eyes.

The Image Metrics animation process captures facial details like eye movement, lip and tongue synching, subtle expressions and skin textures that can be compromised in the use of traditional motion capture methods. Advanced mapping technology allows Image Metrics to deliver facial animation results up to five times faster than motion capture methods and ten times faster than key frame animation.

[edit] History

Image Metrics was founded in 2001 in Manchester by Gareth Edwards, Kevin Walker and Alan Brett. The Image Metrics office in Santa Monica was opened four years later, in 2005 by Kelvin Duckett.

The Image Metrics performance capture animation process was developed over the past seven years by an in-house team of physicists, programmers and animators. Since its inception, Image Metrics facial animation technology has been applied in over 40 video games, movies and commercials worldwide.

Image Metrics technology was also used to animate the deceased actor Richard Burton for a computer-generated encore performance. The company provided the modeling and facial animation for a photo-realistic, 11-foot 3D hologram of the late Burton for the Live on Stage! production of "Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of The War of The Worlds." Image Metrics animated a Richard Burton in his mid 30's to recreate his role as journalist George Herbert. Image Metrics completed a total of 23 minutes of facial animation synchronized to the original audio recording of the international star of stage and screen.