How does MotionBuilder work?

[SebastianOsborn]

Okay, so I am making a video game with photorealistic cut scenes and I need some good motion capture software that is within a reasonable price range.  MotionBuilder seems like my best bet.

But before considering this as a purchase I'd like to make, I need to know some things:
1. Preproduction: How do I need to set up my camera to accurately capture my movement in a video.  How many cameras do I need?  Do I need special cameras or can I just use the one(s) I have?  Do I need markers for the suit and background?  Where can I buy mocap suits?

2. Postproduction: How does the data transfer?  Does this data put down keyframes in my Maya timeline?  Are there special ways to rig or assign joints to characters to allow the motion capture to work right?

I don't know very much about all this.  All I know is the points on the actors' suits tells the computer how to move the CGI character.. that' ALL I know.  I need to learn as much as possible about mocap before even considering the possibility of buying it.  

Thanks guys.

[cornelh · Accepted solution]

Hi Sebastian,

Hope all is well with you these days?  As far as you question on Motion capture, usually you would use a seperate system to do the initial motion capture and use MotionBuilder to retarget your mocap, clean up animation and re-animate troubled areas.  Many people use these systems to capture mocap data:

http://www.vicon.com/

https://www.optitrack.com/motion-capture-animation/

http://www.phasespace.com/impulse-motion-capture.html

http://synertial.com/

https://www.xsens.com/products/xsens-mvn/

http://www.noitom.com/index.php/mocap/perception-neuron

The list can go forever to tell you the truth.  As far as cheap DIY.  There are some people using systems via IR with Kinect from Microsoft and similar cameras:

http://brekel.com/

http://ipisoft.com/ 

http://www.reallusion.com/iclone/mocap/

http://www.organicmotion.com/mocap-for-animation/

I wish is was as simple as yeah just use MotionBuilder to do your mocap, yet you need something to capture that data for you, then in Motionbuilder you can do the rest, In actuallity for your application, you might be able to do most of the work in Maya, it is a little more tedious, yet it saves you a bit.  Also some of the listed systems have their own software to do clean up and retargeting, so when choosing a mocap solution, you need to look at all the angles.  cost, efficiency, end results.. etc... you might be able to get away with a simple system and go straight to Maya.  Or it might be beneficial to use MotionBuilder then to Maya.  I'm the type that tries to cut steps in any process, so the end choice is yours.

Best of luck.   BTW this post was auto escalated as a Case in my queue, let me know if it can be closed or not.

cheers, and best of luck in your mocap quest.

[SebastianOsborn]

Thank you so much for all your advice, recommendations, information, etc.  I certainly know more about mocap now than I did before!  I will likely be going with OrganicMotion, as they are markerless.  Anyway, thanks again!

[Anonymous]

Hi, Housein.  Thanks for your input.  I'm really excitied about using the large library of Mixamo animations provided free from their new owner Adobe who developed the Fuse product.  I don't have to mess around with figuring out how to use mocap (for now, maybe later) or try to find actors to do my poses. I can use pre-made Mixamo characters with animations and even facial expression applied in Maya.  Do you know of any good tutorials that specifically addresses the workflow from Mixamo to MotionBuilder.  When I get them into MoBuilder I get lost. 

[Anonymous]

As an industry specialist working in Motion Capture, I'd highly recommend skipping Organic Motion.

Though markerless sounds attractive, the system is very limited in what you can accurately capture with it and honestly, I wouldn't even recommend it for prototyping. For the cost of this system, you're better off going with a low end Optitrack system, you'll get far better data that is actually usable.

If you really must go markerless though, check out http://www.thecaptury.com/ 

Good luck with your project!

[SebastianOsborn]

Thanks David! Yeah, I actually only have a budget of about $1,000 to $2,000 for mocap software. And I found out just how much Organic Motion costs. So, going with something with markers is totally fine with me if it means lower cost. And I would greatly appreciate it if you could possibly provide with a few options that are within my price range that you know of -- if you can. Thanks again David!