Amazing new Real Time character animation
Kevin Sanderson
Posts: 1,643
Done on a GTX680 with new software ActiVision has been developing. Simply amazing. Just think what can be done when real animators get their hands on this and start tweaking mocap data or making it from scratch! Hope it becomes available for us lowly mortals.
There's a PowerPoint presentation on Jorge Jimenez's blog that points up the differences you get with the eyes and the effects on the skin. http://www.iryoku.com/blog
Something that might be doable in renders of V4 and M4, etc. in Carrara. We can do SSS and with layer techniques maybe do as well or close with the skin, and eyes with refraction and SSS should be doable as well. Probably take some good experimenting time.
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Impressive. The only major giveaway for me is the line between the teeth and the upper lip when his mouth's open. Not enough to fall into Uncanny Valley, just enough for a "that's not right" feeling. And after a few run-throughs, I realised the mouth speaking movements were a little too precise-looking. Although a good lip-reader might disagree.
Wow.. Is it possible that we've crossed the uncanny valley? (And now coming up the other side!)
Something they fail to tell you
;) lol
Better lip sync with digital Ira in the Nvidia Face Works demo using the same USC performance data.
About 10:45 into this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5d1ZOYU4gpo
And Stan the Activision was done with a GTX680 and the Ira demo done with a new Titan card. All GPU.
Yes, I know ;) but have you seen the cost of the GTX680? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130769
That is only $100 less then I paid for my comp lol At that price it might as well be a super computer for me lol
Yes, I know ;) but have you seen the cost of the GTX680? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130769
That is only $100 less then I paid for my comp lol At that price it might as well be a super computer for me lol
re: GTX680
1536 CUDA Cores
wowsir!
Yes, I know ;) but have you seen the cost of the GTX680? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130769
That is only $100 less then I paid for my comp lol At that price it might as well be a super computer for me lol
Yup, none of this new hardware is cheap since it's a super computer on a board. Keeps me from building new machines waiting to see the latest and greatest. I can't afford much new right now anyway. So for you and me we get to use our money for other stuff. But it is amazing to see what can be rendered in real time that used to take days or longer if you even tried in Carrara or other software. The Blender crowd can't do this stuff, yet, either.
Lara Croft with new TressFX hair:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvHq4JIcneY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOVAMqwIrJQ
With ya. This rig was fairly standard when I got it and I figured on a couple of rounds of up grades before I got a new one; I try to get at least 5-6 years out of a comp and this one is only 3 years old. I need a new graphics card, to pump the ram up 3+ more gig, and go to a terabit HDD. But first it was fuel injectors, and tires, on my jeep. summer is coming and I have to get a weed-eater fixed, my push mower serviced, and a valve job on a ride on. So upgrade funds are tight. ;)
Struts and additional for me. No big computer money for a while.
is it just me or did that uncannily look like Bruce Wilis acting style?
He's right. It's supposed to be half fruit and half yogurt.
I usually don't get that worked up over it, but dog gone it... sometimes you're really counting on both halves and feel really ripped off if it's not right. I mean how hard could it be to just make the darn thing the way the name suggests - directs - demands?
He's very cool. Very creepy. Very very real. It wasn't until I saw the live talk link that I finally realized that it wasn't just a new form of using video imagery - other than to collect the appropriate data. He is outstanding. Now that's sss - you see his ear? Man. All of the material elements are spot on - with slight little hints here and there that give him away. But the way his teeth are made of human tooth ivory, his eyes are real and his skin absorbs and passes light in such a real way. I never really want my animations to get to this point, thank goodness - or I'd have to put everything on hold! lol
Lara Croft is magnificent. I really like the enabled hair movements. Her movements are very well timed and orchestrated.
Like her look.
Both of them... I like the mouth movements. His lip sync needs some work... but so what. Hers is great. But I was thinking of creating some new morphs for V4 and M4 for the face for allowing the lips to stay together smoothly as the jaw opens, closes and moves side to side for chewing and frustrations. Even without any morphs beyond what I have already, I am very pleased with what I can get them to do with enough patience. That really only needs to be done a little - for the most part. Just enough to get the movements seen from time to time during moments that could really benefit from it. Aside from that, just having the camera in the right spot at the right time can totally avoid the need, while following the action around so nobody needs it anyways.
With the glow channel trick to simulate SSS, as demonstrated to me by Mr. Evil Producer, I also feel that such a 'trick' is just enough to convince the audience that the character has great SSS. Because you only really need it during extreme moments - again, just to show it off, and then simply have the effect unnecessary. That one is even easier than the situation I mentioned above for the more time consuming facial expressions. When you use the trick, spend the time to get it right. Once the right map is painted, you could use the effect any time you need it, since Carrara can animate shaders.
I am finding, however, that it gets a bit trickier when you try using avi texture maps that run different amounts of time on the same figure. The next stop will be making all of them the same length and seeing if Carrara handles it better. I'm also considering that it may have been that I was also mixing those avi maps with other addition and multiply operations. So the next run will have all of the setting I want for the effect built into the map avi, and give Carrara more of a fighting chance. I love how Carrara lets you beat it up a bit though. Just push it 'till it snaps - it always starts back up and gives you another shot for success! lol
Dart, you could try using a magnet deformer in Carrara to make minor adjustments to tweak lips, etc. for facial animation. They use a similar function with a different name in messiah to do that.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVFL11hlMgc
And an animation done in messiah using Lee Perry Smith's Xerxes where the tweaks are done to the lips and cheeks, etc. using whatever it is they call it in messiah... I can't think of the term right now, but it's very similar to the magnet deformer in Carrara.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVW16FmHnak
Really quick before I watch those:
I'm having a hard time believing that I've never even so much as looked for a magnet in Carrara yet. Don't even know where they are, since I've never thought of trying one.
Weird, huh. Now I just cannot wait to load one in, set up the field and pull it around! lol
I guess I've just been having so much fun and success with the morphing abilities that trying this just never occurred to me. But I'm feeling in my gut how much more power such a thing will add to animations. Everywhere.
I wonder if you can load a whole bunch of them of if they slow down Carrara... I guess there's one way to find out, eh? :)
Back when D|S first came out with deformers, I could never do with them what I wanted. But what I wanted was a morph that could tweak individual polys. Now that I have the cure for that, these magnet thingies will be a huge asset, I'm guessing.
Thanks for that tip.
3dage just demonstrated magnet use within the vertex modeler a wee while back in my sculpting apps thread.
It's cool to feel so glad about everything I've achieved in this Carrara Pro suite so far, knowing that I've only begun to scratch the surface. But then to be clued in to such a basic, powerful tool, so essential to the exact stuff I've been focusing on, at such a perfect time to be discovering it. Just sweet!
Right now I have my workstation melting its innards on sun beams. You've (Kevin) mentioned quite some time ago, that what Carrara needs is some updated presets that show off more of what Carrara can do with different settings. That's exactly what I've been slaving over ever since - and that's where Carrara Environ Kit: Woodlands is coming from. The thing about your comment that struck me is that this sort of thing is what I do for myself constantly. Tweaking settings, naturalizing colors and shapes, optimizing the scene so I'm ready to roll render film whenever I can get Michael and Vicky to quit horsing around and show up for their clips! Genesis is no better, perhaps even worse. He, she... it... can't decide what or who it's going to be half the time. I finally get it happy with its skin, and off to Scheels it goes... trying on clothes and shoes... tossing around frisbee golf discs...
One day I hope that somebody just comes up with digital versions of these guys so I can get some freaking work done! :)
Ooops. Sorry.
But It's looking like I might have found a sweet spot for the Carrara "God Rays" for a cool preset. If so, it will make environment with realistic sky and sun light number thirty! There are twelve that use the 360 degree backgrounds made from the realistic sky presets. But there are three RS presets specifically set for creating your own 360 backgrounds.
Okay.
Off to watch those clips. I do believe that this will be my first time seeing Messiah in action. You own it, don't you? I think I remember you buying it last year? Anyways, if so... how well do you like it?
Okay... this time I'm really gone.
But very soon I'll be digging in.
Wow... "Big Deal" (second link) is amazing. I can see how it adds so much more personality. Rosie and I are getting prepared to start practice reading our scripts for Episode One. Gives me butterflies thinking how close this whole thing is finally coming. Been recording and playing live rock and roll for 32 years now, and this gets me nervous? I find it refreshingly funny!
But I'm eager to get something down in WAV so I can work on the personality tweaks in Mimic Pro for Carrara - which I'm really excited about. I've already tested some really sweet facial expressions on Rosie that just make my whole me tingle when I see it. But it's the talking that really sets us apart from one another. The older of my two little sisters always has her eyes tweaked to 30 on the side to side morph every time she talks to you. Well... except that she's real. Some people leave their mouth open through nearly every word - or after the sentence... hang that mouth open. Some talk out of one side more than the other... I like how Mimic let's you set up these differences in tiny, easy to keep with the figure, files that further identify who you're seeing. I used to be a Monster makeup artist in the 80's, but I was also the main Monster of the place: Zekiel Raven, Lord of the Dark. Heh.... fun job for a teenager, eh? I got to do the intros to "Tales from the Dark Side" on channel 26 as Zekiel. Twas most fun. But not as cool as running the show in probably one of the best haunted mansions in the country. I could be set straight on that... but this place was not a converted home. It was a solid, built as a Haunted Mansion, mansion! I loved that job!
Yes, I know ;) but have you seen the cost of the GTX680? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130769
That is only $100 less then I paid for my comp lol At that price it might as well be a super computer for me lol
I see your GTX680 2GB and raise you it's older sibling... http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=193_1385&products_id=22189
I don't have this card, mine is a ATI 6850.
Works great for my meager Carrara needs. Now that I have Dogwaffle Howler, and it uses GPU enhancements, as well as preparing for future software advances, I'll likely upgrade next year. This one is great though - as funny as the little fella seems comparatively. Hey Kevin, when you get that new big beast, I'll buy your GTX! ;)
Yep, Dart, I've always thought some updated presets would help people get to where they are going more quickly. Carrara can do much better work than some of the presets lead you to believe. I liken it to someone posting a WIP... some of the presets seem unfinished or the folks making them didn't know they could make them look much, much better than they do with better color choices, textures, etc.
I do own messiah 5. I find it to be powerful but hard to get your head around for some parts. There are more steps to get where you want to go, like Blender, compared to Carrara. And there are some things you can do more easily in Carrara. Of course, there are time savers and neat features in messiah, but there are things just getting fixed in v6 that's now out. I can't afford the upgrade right now but it would fix things I would need... like anti-aliased hair that renders more quickly than the hour it takes in v5!! But the show stopper for me is it can't easily bring in DAZ Content. Unless it's something that can be done in messiah easily, I'm better off trying it in Carrara first.
There are many things you can do in Carrara but nobody seems to know they exist or forget about them like the magnet deformers. You can set it up a little faster in Carrara than in messiah. Works just as well. I've found similar functions or recognized similar functions in Carrara watching messiah tutorial videos. messiah does have a neat feature on the camera display to find where depth of field is falling and displays the sound file waveform behind your keyframes, but there's other stuff that makes Carrara just as competitive in other features. They are still posting videos of new features in messiah 6, but only a couple have me interested enough to think about a future upgrade. I can wait based on what's been shown so far.
And I'll probably wear out my GTX470 with Octane. So you better save up for your own high-end card. :)
Hmm, I'm not as impressed with that Laura/tomb raider vid as some seem to be. Go back and watch it again and see if you can spot the screaming error. Note what is going on around her.
Works great for my meager Carrara needs. Now that I have Dogwaffle Howler, and it uses GPU enhancements, as well as preparing for future software advances, I'll likely upgrade next year. This one is great though - as funny as the little fella seems comparatively. Hey Kevin, when you get that new big beast, I'll buy your GTX! ;)
Hmm.... Alright. You win. :coolcheese:
But I remember liking how her lips moved while she was saving the day on the pole at the end. It can be hard, when your working on lip sync, NOT to mouth every sound. When I was testing Mimic last year or before(?), I found myself at a dinner party some month or so later, and couldn't stop watching peoples mouths as they spoke. Hindsight begs me to go back and listen to what people may have thought, who were watching ME do this! lol
I was amazed at how little the lips actually move when someone talks. "Whad'ya talkin' about?" rolls out much differently than "What Are You Talking About?" using all of the visemes that would seem to be the correct way to match out all of those pronounced "Youw" and "Talkeeng" whereas I'll find my own self saying Tawkin, instead (NE Wisconsin Accent, ya know!). And when said at conversation speed, the entire "talkin'" is a single movement - not a two-syllable keyframed event. That's where I really like to just sit back and watch people. I try to do it in a manner to not offend or look creepy. It's amazing how much facial movement goes into the listener of the conversation when not talking. And at the dinner party, it was really neat, because I observed on so many people that they'll actually force their own facial movements to attempt to trick the speaker and others in the conversation into thinking that they're interested and paying attention. I think some people go through this facial orientation even if they are paying attention and interested, but don't want anyone to possibly think otherwise!
Nonetheless... I go back to the second clip. Right away and during those first seconds... I love how they have her mouth hanging slightly open and just her whole movement coordination as she concentrates on making that radio work. Now she's no longer relying on sight, and so her eyes, just like what many of us automatically do without thinking, turn away from the subject to let her hearing become the focusing sense. I'm not crazy about the nose bridge wrinkles. In fact, I'll go as far as to say that I dislike them. But although I would have made those morphs differently, there's no way I'm comparing my hand to that of whomsoever made that incredible character!
In going back to both videos, I felt relieved that I was no longer watching for the differences between activated and deactivated hair. That part gone from the process, I enjoyed what the cameraman was doing. Watching what the director wanted me to see felt pretty natural. I don't play games except for the occasional D&D or Warhammer, Warhammer 40K and the like. But I can watch my son play for hours on end. The graphics have come so far it just amazes me. I come from the era where I remember when the Big Mac was invented. The first consumer microwave ovens, personal computers, Atari Home Arcade (just gave mine a two big boxes full of cartridges to St. Vincents a few years ago!), cordless telephones, twelve foot backyard satellite dishes, etc., Mom and Dad let me stay up and watch the Apollo launch. My dad came home one day with this really cool plastic filter made to fit the face of our TV that made the top blue, the bottom green and a yellowish center. We had color TV!!!
Anyways, I find it an honor to have grown up seeing all of these advances happen right before my eyes. Perhaps that's why I'm so forgiving of Carrara when it chokes when I try something I've never tried before. I still feel that it's more my fault than Carrara's! lol
I like the new Lara. Nothing against Angela, but I'd rather see an original character than a replica of an actress. Even though Grendel's mother in Beowulf was excellent! So was everybody else.