Why Didn't Motion Capture Replace Animation?

[@SleepyGameDev189]

I get why people say the polar express was creepy, but as a kid, it was one of my favorite movies. Also the AI problem is also in programming, people EXPECT it to work, but then they have to spend a couple hours properly integrating it and it just ends up taking more time to get the same result.

[@WasatchWind]

Same. I think that many films couldn't really do the style well, but it works for Polar Express. It gives it this dream like quality. But more than the somewhat dated characters, the atmosphere, the music, it all feels so incredibly Christmassy.

[@ShinGhidorah17]

I adore The Polar Express.

[@starmaker75]

Honest polar express and a Christmas Carol 2009 I think did a decent job with motion capture. Given there most realistic art style made the animation feel less noticeable. Also yes a Christmas Carol 2009 is one my favorite version of a Christmas carol.

[@eduardobarreto5555]

Yeah. Yesterday I used AI to write a simple Powershell script. If I knew the commands to do what I wanted to do it would have been a five minute task but instead I had to keep wrangling the AI for 30 minutes because it fucked up and I needed to give it better instructions. AI that does the whole job better than a professional is still far away.

[@LOC-Ness]

that's not true, everyone is using it

[@SirloinBurgers]

I think the Doodley avatar works better as a mo-capped mascot suit than most others because it doesn't have pupils. Seeing an animated character tilt and turn their head without moving their eyeballs just reminds me of Foodfight. Also love the AI comparison, I am so tired of being prompted to use AI companions with pet names in every piece of software I touch. But when is a corporate fad not annoying lol

[@tinsnow3442]

You should check out some of the indie AI creators, I highly recommend @AzeAlter

[@stupidityisforever]

Holy shit its sirloin i love your stuff man! ! !

[@jackmcslay]

I've seen multiple VTubers with eye tracking

[@elimcgamerguy]

agree *but* i also love how LGR has/had his assistant's keyphrase as "hey flerbnerb" and i really think keyphrase editing should be a part of all voice activated assistants but yeah every single software doesn't need an assistant. It's like clippy with less charm.

[@nairocamilo]

Sirloin! Love your animations

[@BenniWithABiscuit]

The fact they had to put a seal of approval at the end of a movie's credits to say that there was no motion capture is honestly wild 😭

[@peterfamilyguy2040]

if i remember correctly pixar put that seal at the credits of ratatouille as a passive-agressive joke, due to happy feet winning the oscar for best animated film the year prior (beating pixar's cars) despite it being done with motion capture now i want every single animated film that comes out to include a seal of no AI-generated content

[@MattTOB618]

​​@@peterfamilyguy2040 Well, that's gonna be tough, because a lot of CG animation already uses AI to simulate things such as waves.

[@peterfamilyguy2040]

​@@MattTOB618 that's AI that actually helps to make animation easier by using math to simulate physics and other tedious and hard stuff that would require millions of dollars and multiple months or years to animate entirely by hand the AI that's actually bad is the generative one, which tries to produce images and videos entirely by itself, and the one that's been causing greedy companies to start firing their artists

[@MattTOB618]

@@peterfamilyguy2040 Yes, I agree.

[@mrmawster9786]

ai *image* generated content would make it be more specific since there's been a trends to call almost everything ai lol

[@camwing]

I was in the middle of typing a comment that compared executive cost cutting with motion capture to generative AI, then you beat me to that exact point. Glad I didn't post that comment, otherwise I'd look like an IDIOT

[@AdrianAnimations360]

No reply’s?guss I’m the 1st reply.

[@Killa1012]

its the guy!

[@Notiosorex]

pin this man

[@Fastrox]

I almost did the same thing. :D

[@Jake28]

why do you always write comments before finishing the video lol? you did this on NewFramePlus's zenless zone zero video too

[@ericfieldman]

Fun fact: Tom Hanks did a lot of face capture for the kids in the polar express which could be a large contributor to why it looks the way it does

[@frank8917]

Dear god, i hope he got paid well for this

[@SonicFanFromScratch]

That explains a lot.

[@NeonBeeCat]

​@@frank8917he's Tom Hanks I'm sure it all worked out

[@spaceboyctstudios2934]

Actually, he was gonna do it for ALL of the characters, but was getting tired and had it scale down to just 5 characters.

[@ericfieldman]

@@spaceboyctstudios2934 i don't know the details, I've just heard they didn't consider how differently an adult face translates in capture to a child's

[@coffeebeans5460]

I don't know if anyone else has mentioned this yet, but I will never forget the shock on my face when I learned how the director of FOODFIGHT opted for motion capture for their animation over their handmade 3D animation, which was ALMOST already finished with during production, just because "it looks better" (paraphrasing but still insane). 😭

[@spydersoup8447]

Yeah, it goes to show how he had absolutely no idea what the heck he was doing with the film and another proof is that even if you come up with a good idea for a film, show or video game, you must leave it to the professionals to execute it right.

[@Rangernewb5550]

Almost everything about that movie was insane.

[@nateroo1486]

Can i just say, thank you for being very real with the sponsors price and applications. I feel a lot of creators just do the base read without talking about price or limitations and it really sets me off of the product being promoted. That transparency really helps and thanks for that lol

[@MonokhromatiQ]

Tom Scott really changed my view and standard regarding influencers and disclaiming their ads lmao

[@inkerJ]

I can't believe jar jar binks was the catalyst of vtubers

[@Ze_Chef69]

Another reason to hate him

[@miajajajajajajajajajo]

​@@Ze_Chef69 another reason to love him

[@redshyguynumber5567]

@@miajajajajajajajajajo The duality of the Star Wars fans towards Jar Jar Binks in a nutshell

[@thatkid1277]

Crazy to me people still hate v-tubers, like ​most of them are just artist. They aint doing anything bad. @Ze_chef69

[@victornoel36]

Sometimes a tragedy can have its benefits. For instance, during WW2 millions of people died, but there's been a lot of advancement in aviation and computing.

[@BongoGary]

I still think Monster House's motion capture does compliment it in a creepy sense, giving the characters "okay" expressions, but The Adventures of Tintin, I personally think, is the best example of a motion capture movie, since it looks the most realistic, which was their intention, but it also keeps the cartoonish looks of the comics, rather than the fake look of the original live action intentions they had. Motion capture should be used in films if there is a solid reason for it (i.e. complex movements, as Doodley mentioned)

[@EnderGrad]

Every character looked great, except for Tintin.... Tintin looked freaky

[@themightyflog]

Rango and Grants 0

[@craigwilde2162]

@@EnderGrad I think it's more his overall design didn't translate as well as the others' from the comics to how they did them in the movie. Personally I thought he looked more 'bland' then creepy

[@prcervi]

the adventures of tintin film did not find a happy parking spot in the uncanny valley in character design, solid B+ overall but jfc tintin came out looking like someone's sleep paralysis demon

[@Selrisitai]

@@prcervi I agree with craigwilde2162 that Tintin himself just kind of looks like a normal young man, lol.

[@ArifRWinandar]

As always the problem boils down to executives trying to cut costs without understanding why those costs are there in the first place.

[@SonicFanFromScratch]

Ah yes, just a normal case of a multi-billion dollar industry doing stupid stuff.

[@MetaBro]

This genuinely brought a lot of comfort to my worries of the industry. Yes AI is here to stay, but like mocap, that doesn’t mean there aren’t purposes for it. Execs just need to realize it again like they did with mocap

[@yogeybogeybear3542]

AI will be used for between frames; and probably reduce the man hours on a project but this was the opinion penned by (I forget his name but former Disney animator who was on PROKO, a few years ago), good for between, bad for keys & still needing touch up/review.

[@HiHi-oc3gh]

@@yogeybogeybear3542I think the only Disney animator that’s been on Proko is Aaron Blaise

[@MatthewPrower]

not to mention “genAI” and “AI assistant tool” are more-or-less two things lumped in the same category

[@drewo.127]

@@yogeybogeybear3542you just read my mind! I 100% think that if built, programmed, and used correctly, AI generation can absolutely help with tweening for frame by frame animation, similar to how auto keyframing works with rigging! Software already can generate in between frames for easing in and out in frame by frame! However, most software still requires a vector shape or a rigged model to generate the frames. For on-the-fly, hand drawn frames both drawn in the software itself, and even imported image sequences, I think that could be where Gen AI could help creating in between frames! And it should only use basic, non-infringing data for it anyway, because all it would need is the key frames that you draw, the type of movement you’re looking for, and it could generate rough (but modifiable) in between frames and that could help save time, without risking anyone’s livelihoods (hopefully/eventually!) Just as how Motion Capture can help create a base animation for further tweaking and stylization, (I wouldn’t be surprised if even the Bumblebee movie used a hybrid of motion capture and key framing to bring the Autobots and Decepticons to life!), if used responsibly (especially regarding it’s programming) gen AI can help animators with speeding up production regarding stuff like tweening, regardless of what animation process or combo of processes you use, and without infringing on their work! (I think there should be a way to either delete any stored data, or not have the AI actually train on your data, and just know the basic rules of animation movement, and merge it with the key frames you specify, and stuff like that!)

[@Lucien_M]

​@@yogeybogeybear3542that's interpolation AI, which is a separate AI altogether.

[@Malao558]

Y’know, I think that cycle you describe at the end can be applied to a lot more than just AI - A new emerging technology creates a new method to create something, companies jump on the hype train and use it for flashy but frivolous products that are generally rejected by the wider audience, then the tool gets scaled back and re-implemented in a way that meshes with the existing creative process rather than replacing it entirely. The Dotcom bubble comes to mind.

[@doodley3d]

In a previous version of the script, I actually did mention a few other technologies that studios co-opted to reduce labor costs (limited animation was a big one that came to mind) to portray a sort of "cycle" that the industry goes through every now and then, but it felt like too dense of a claim to back up with sources. You can hear a remnant of that script at 10:38.

[@Pxilez3d]

The difference. Ai dosent need any skilled person or more than one person people to create and its just to replace artists Prove me I am wrong

[@greenstarlover1]

Dotcom bubble?

[@ShaddyFromHatena]

​@@Pxilez3d in it's current state this is blatantly false. For one thing, ai models are terrible at only modifying one detail. Ask for a variation of the boots and it'll regenerate a whole image with multiple different features. Its also hard to modify for specific and unique elements, given that the models are designed to produce a certain level of common denominator. This is to say, ai can generate images, but it's not very good at generating the exact image one would want, just something within an applicable range. Very similar to coding where it can provide code, but to reach the actually desired end product for that, you need a person basically doing all the work of cleaning it up which often takes longer than just doing it from scratch and requires a similar skill level. There are usable applications where this doesn't matter too much, like if you just want a pretty image of can give a pretty image, but right now the limitations on control are problematic with general model ai art

[@Pxilez3d]

@@ShaddyFromHatena you never saw Photoshop ai? you just select specific part of image and tell it what you want exactly as much as you want. and if the results aren't what you imagined exactly. it's because it's not you who created the result. same thing if you told an artist to create image for you

[@doodley3d]

Thanks for watching! Just a heads up, you might see the thumbnail for this one change, I created the original thumbnail fairly quick and I'm running an A/B test on some new ones.

[@jkl970]

they just raised the price on the coil pro up $1,000. from $1,995 to $2,995. i got an email newsletter from them that said that.

[@Oct_sflb]

I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU'VE DONE THIS😭😭😭😭 MY SPLEEN IS FALLING APART!!! 😫

[@ClassicFalloutToddHoward]

I actually liked the old thumbnail :(

[@Sup01]

Doodles doesn’t actually look that bad using motion capture I couldn’t tell until you said it also the animation video essays are great

[@RedNinjaTutorials]

Awesome video!

[@youraveragechroma2139]

6:00 OH, I gotta look at murder drones episode 1. I’ve never been able to put my finger on what/why the animation felt off and why things improved so much!

[@Nuzilicious]

Callback ping!

[@totesrandomguy]

Gen AI won't replace art and animation but executives and businessmen will do anything to replace labor.

[@Jazmission]

Corporate greed

[@MCisAwesome95]

I've always felt vtuber avatars looked a little uncanny, something about digital characters with realistic movement just doesn't look right. Now I finally understand why

[@cashewfluffypop5893]

Realistic movement? Nah, there's nothing realistic in these algorithmical rigs at all. They're just somehow turned the human's moves into non-human's.

[@cloudywillowshome]

I wonder if it’d look better if you exaggerated your movements while using the rig

[@MCisAwesome95]

@@cloudywillowshome Same, actually

[@NihongoWakannai]

​@@cashewfluffypop5893 3D vtubers are almost all raw motion capture whereas 2D vtubers have tuned algorithims as a middleman between the motion capture data and the end result.

[@spydersoup8447]

Yeah, tubers tend to use motion captured avatars for their videos mainly because they want their viewers to see their reaction to things like when they do a let's play of a game or a reaction video while also hiding their real faces because of online privacy. KZbinrs presenting themselves as their online avatars than their real world faces isn't a new thing.

[@XmortoxX1990]

12:34 honestly, is best to have an optimistic but realistic look on things rather than just be overly negative and pessimistic about everything as many people do. Mocap manages to get it's own niches on animation and I´m happy for that. I think the same will happen to AI.

[@Yipper64]

1:44 random but this just made the idea spring to mind, I still *desperately* want to see a fantasy documentary. I want to see the British guy talk about pixies like he does seagulls, or follow the story of a kitsune like a wolf. Or talk about the mating patterns of dragons. Idk.

[@Selrisitai]

Play the game Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. There's a remastered version, too. It's not only fun, with a better combat system than almost any western fantasy RPG of its time (lookin' at you, Skyrim) but it has plenty of this, "Studying magical creatures with a scientific mind" stuff, in the game's books scattered throughout the world, and in dialogue.

[@CamTheCan]

Haven’t finished the video yet, but it’d be hilarious if Doodley motion captured himself for the entire video.

[@CamTheCan]

Hehehehe

[@GriffinBankz-o1p]

YOU WERE RIGHT LET’S GO

[@titanic_monarch796]

i think he actually is

[@Mr_Ass]

I called it too, wow.

[@EzyVibe]

it might seem crazy what im bout to say

[@redshyguynumber5567]

I love the point of "More Human than Human", an animator can make motion more lively because they understand how a human moves and importantly, can *imagine* how a human moves. Imagination is not a simulation of reality, rather an interpretation of it that we think is appealing because we're humans. You know what's not human, and therefore can't imagine human-ness? ROBOTS!

[@Stratelier]

I feel like there's a poetic juxtaposition here... When you're learning art (e.g. to draw based on observation/references) you're being trained to depict what you _see_ and not what you _perceive_ (objective vs. subjective); but once you have a grip on that, you focus on depicting what you _perceive_ not what you _see_ (subjective, not objective) so that the audience can see what you perceived.

[@10upstudios]

3:50 it might (probably) be nostalgia speaking, but i kinda adore the jankyness in monster house specifically, it's kinda fitting for the creepyness even if the studio didn't necessarily intend for it

[@aaaaaaaaaa7316]

The CalArts Video for Those Looking: kzbin.info/www/bejne/j3Kah2mcrN99qqs

[@flamingscar5263]

1 place motion capture tech has been a game changer is VR, specifically social VR games like VRchat, it adds so much to have someones body captured and replicated in a virtual environment, both to the person being captured themselves and those around them

[@Queen_Coda]

I’m still very inexperienced with animation, but motion capture has been able to rapidly accelerate my abilities especially when it comes to complex poses. I’m even working on some animated films of my own at the moment :) it’s definitely just a tool to be used alongside traditional 3d animation, but I think it also has its merits as a learning tool for beginner animators and it helps make animation and filmmaking even more accessible!

[@Adam-xd9tr]

That was genuinely one of the best "sponsored" sections I've seen, because it tied into the main topic of what a consumer focused mo-cap suit looks like. It shows off the strengths and limitations, and points out that while still expensive, you get good results for the price considering larger studios spend tens of thousands on the best suits. Major kudos there.

[@ryttyr14]

1:05 I'm sorry. I had to rewatch this part several times to hear what you were talking about, because my attention kept being drawn to that kid's stellar performance.

[@unlawfulale]

play god of war

[@gambit_sfm]

I'd like to throw a mention at Russianbadger for his unique sense of using mocap for his videos and the studio Goodbye Kansas who does these REALLY near realistic shorts for stuff and I highly suggest you check out their Cyberpunk videos and the behind the scenes breakdowns

[@FoxBlocksHere]

Gonna be honest, I had NO idea you used motion capture for your avatar! The performance felt so genuine because you use it so well! Great video as always!

[@pixellangel]

im pretty sure it was just for that section, the head looks a lot shakier than usual

[@HiHi-oc3gh]

@@pixellangelnope, Doodley used mocap for the entire video

[@pixellangel]

@@HiHi-oc3gh ohhh youre right!! i was playing professor layton while watching so i was only half paying attention lol

[@Randoman590]

In other videos the avatar was hand-animated, but it's mocap throughout this video.

[@FoxBlocksHere]

Upon reviewing his older videos, I can see now that only this one uses mocap. The other ones are hand-animated. My mistake!

[@augustthenuz984]

4:06 I'm still waiting for a sequel cause I LOVE the Adventures of Tintin movie.

[@Dergeytruto]

I'll never give up hope 😭

[@JonathanCallarman]

Yes! We need Tintin 2!

[@DuskstarShine]

1:32 OMG recently went to a motion festival thing in London with my other animation course mates and got to see BOTH Alex Hirsch and James Baxter! Was super amazing, inspirational and informative. Cool to see they are so linked even in the past! :D

[@AstaWorkboy]

DOODLEY!! A GLORIOUS DAY IT IS NOW!

[@ameteuraspirant]

It should be noted that mocap suit acting is a skill on its own. In the same way that acting through heavy makeup or costumes takes a certain amount of skill, acting when you can't see what the result is going to be also does. In reference to your it lacks exaggeration argument, there's examples of good motion capture, like basically anything Andy Serkis has done.

[@LonelyBotStudio]

The small mention of tintin is appreciated here because it is great and well executed but then you just wonder why it wasn't done traditionally with the same script/actors, etc. either way, tintin is probably the best of this little era in my opinion.

[@Randoman590]

I'm still baffled as to why the Generative AI companies have focused on trying to create systems to just draw for you to make standalone images, rather than making systems to integrate with existing production pipelines and automate tedious tasks. Instead of making tools to make artists' lives easier and give them more control over their final product, they seem to be taking that control away and trying to replace them entirely. I hope they'll soon realise it's not going to work and switch gears, but I don't know how long it'll take to get to that point.

[@Linux_Fan_Boi_76]

I mean, there is open source AI software that's really easy to work into an person workflow. I use flow frames to double the frame count on my Initial roughs. Which I then trace and clean up. So I can double my frame count from 5 to 10 fps for my animatics. Flow frames is free. Its on itch io. And it lets you export the interpolation as an image sequence. So its really easy to just drop the PNG's it spits out back into blender to retrace.

[@BestOneEver247]

It'll depend on how well current negotiations between The Animation Guild and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers go that can hopefully remedy this issue

[@MorbidEel]

probably less VC money

[@michemicalromance]

I think when AI images started popping off, just the technology itself was enough to surprise and make people interested in buying it. However, Open AI's stance right now is that they want to replace workers. I don't think they predicted the industry wasn't going to immediately jump into it.

[@michemicalromance]

Important to note that if they were ever planning to make the technology useful, they shouldn't have violated copyright laws, since the images pretty much become useless as there are potential crimes in using them comercially. Honestly it baffles me how they just let AI into the wild without really thinking too much about the consequences

[@celinebotte6530]

12:01 I'm a 2D animator and clean up artist myself, and I SCREAMED when you said that! THANK YOU

[@Two_Teapod]

yeah

[@uis246]

AI models not avaliable to public(and without ability to run locally) is technofeudalism. All ethical problems people usually mention are not ploblems of AI, but problems with capitalism.

[@KasumiRINA]

I don't think any sensible person thought NFTs would replace ANYTHING, tho crypto bros still insist crypto is useful for anything other than money laundering. But otherwise it is the "MTV will kill music" and "television will destroy cinemas" stuff.

[@xaviere.3299]

Motion Capture is animation, more precisely, and animation tool just like the others. I worked in AA and AAA products as a character animator, and also later continued as a mocap technician, and no one in the industry questions if mocap will replace keyframe animation. They are both valid and necessary tools for animation.

[@aussie_mozzie]

I don't really consider myself an artist anymore, since now I mainly use SFM (Source filmmaker) to make posters. It takes a while and sometimes I don't put in as much effort if I'm tired, but even that has a part of my soul into it. I can't even imagine using AI when I can just open up SFM, load a map, and make what I want.

[@Linux_Fan_Boi_76]

SFM is art. Its digital puppetry. Jim Henson was an artist. And by god, you are too!

[@uis246]

Hmmm... Anything can be turned into art. Pissing on a snow can be turned to art. Sitting on a bench can be turned to art.

[@uis246]

Hmmm... Anything can be turned into art. Pissing on a snow can be turned to art. Sitting on a bench can be turned to art.

[@KasumiRINA]

3D Renders are still art, so is making collages or retouching screenshots and AI gens, people are way to gatekeepy.

[@Stratelier]

10:40 - I was SO waiting for that comparison to get made. Saves me from making it myself!

[@hxgonic]

Was visiting a university in portsmouth last summer, they had a full blown motion capture room and someone in there looked to be filming animations for a game they were making! It was pretty cool

[@scias7929]

This has some UNCANNY resemblances to the current AI problem. Animators now be like: "Not this sh*t again."

[@ArifRWinandar]

3D animation itself used to be the thing that worries animators.

[@Stratelier]

Pre-emptive/predictive comment maybe? (if yes, jump to 10:30 and watch.)

[@Pxilez3d]

The difference Ai is available to any person for free, and doesn't need any skills to create similar work to real artists Motion capture isn't smart tool and it's limitations was obvious especially for non human characters or fights with superpowers for ex, still needed artists to work with it

[@3DSCarnaje]

​@@Pxilez3dDon't get me wrong, I think AI definitely needs some looking into for all kinds of reasons, but saying it takes no skill to make something good with it is just incorrect. For things like nature it'll all usually look pretty samey, but let's be honest, nature already looks pretty samey in the real world. Granted this might just be my view on it, but I'm speaking from personal experience. Went to the Smokey mountains on vacation, and got some decent pictures. While I still appreciate those pictures, any time I see them I'm left wondering if/why I should even go to any other mountains since in my mind they can't possibly look that different. Anyways I'm getting off topic. Back to the AI stuff. Where AI really gets tricky is trying to do anything with an actual person in it. There'll always be some difference in ease based on the model, with premium ones being trained better, but for some of it you need some pretty deep knowledge of the prompts to have things come out the way you want them to. Then again, I could be completely wrong about all that, I've only looked into AI generation a small bit. All I know is that in my attempts I could never make things look as good as the stuff on the front page without outright copying the prompts.

[@Josieemon]

This is funny because motion capture never went away, it’s still used extremely often in feature films for cgi, but fully animated motion captured movies are rare now because it doesn’t fit the style most movies are going for.

[@NeroStreetArt]

Oh my GOD THANK YOU for simply explaining to folks who mocap will never fully replace animation. And it's why AI animation doesn't really scare me. Long story short, I worked for a place that attempted to use mocap and AI for an animated series without any cleanup animators and uhh... from what I heard, it's not working out as well as they had hoped. Non-animators don't understand that animation is its own language. The basics of it can be taught but every animator has their own style and methods for creating. Even if an AI program were to learn all the principles of animation, it will STILL look off and awkward. When an animator animates a scene, they are using their own thoughts, experiences, and decisions. It's not something AI bros WANT to understand, because so many of them don't understand animations isn't recreating life 1:1. It's not something that can be boiled down to a simple algorithm. The best way I can explain it simply is: the reason why Studio Ghibli animates giant tears when a character cries isn'e because it's true to life, it's because that's how it FEELS to cry. Your tears FEEL like they're bigger on your face than they actually look. AI would never be able to create that on its own merits and its programmers largely refuse to understand it,

[@Pelao0o]

It was a funny wiplash at like 3 minutes into the video when I realized they were using motion capture to animate doodley

[@patmine7248]

I think one of my favorite examples of motion capture is from the youtuber TheRussianBadger. He use motion capture in a lot of his video along side gameplay and commentary. I think you just helped me appreciate his work a little bit more. He always talk about animation every now and post a video once in a blue moon. But his work feel like its got a lot of soul when you watch it. And now thanks to this video I know just a little bit more and can Appreciate his work a lot more. So thank you for that.

[@gulfgiggleanimations4472]

I often forget that motion capture is a thing. Like I'll look at high budget animated cutscenes like God of war Ragnarok and think "wow, that must've been really hard to get all that subtle detail into the performance." as if they animated everything entirely by hand.

[@GoldDragon527]

What's frustrating is that AI has a massive use if companies use a small algorithm with all of their previous works they legally own to provide new hires references for what they are working on. This could be such an important technology to help in-betweeners, key framers, style sheet artist, etc. get onboarded with a company's process SO MUCH FASTER than any traditional training. They would have unlimited access to it, it could tell them where it pulled the reference and for what purpose and become comprehensive lesson on what does and does not work in certain scenes. Even if it looks like garbage it could provide invaluable data to an artist to use in their judgement of how they should handle it. But corporations don't think like that and now we have to tear this nonsense down and make new laws until they stop ruining everything.

[@InvasionAnimation]

In an economic world, I am still against that since it will take away jobs. But I Suppose I would be fine with indies using that as long as it is that small amount of ai.

[@jackmcslay]

@@InvasionAnimation There's a joke in economics that goes like this: - An economist visiting China sees hundreds of workers digging with shovels and asks the manager: Economist: "Why aren't you using excavators?" Manager: "Because this way creates more jobs" Economist: "Oh, they should be using spoons then"

[@JPKloess]

I feel like I'm the only person who really enjoys the animation of the Polar Express, and didn't get the inhuman vibe from it people describe. But I wouldn't want it to replace hand animated projects.

[@starmaker75]

I think it works in polar express and to extended a Christmas Carol is because it was going for a dream like experience and with the more relastic art style, it less distraction. To me the artstyle was more noticeable then actual movement.

[@InvasionAnimation]

I got the inhuman vibes but I still enjoyed it.

[@joshslater2426]

I love the film’s slightly surreal aesthetic. The motion capture never bothers me because I get engrossed with the backgrounds and the score.

[@cristianducks747]

As a fan of the mocap I loved the video, you've got an amazing style

[@Neutrax0]

I thoroughly enjoy these info-videos of different perspectives and industries that associate with animation. I can't wait for the next "how-to animating" type reference videos like the walk cycle or the rigging videos again.

[@spaghettiandanimator7743]

Not all that important but if you know about glitch production studios and there recent shows like tadc or Murder Drones then you should look back at their early work like Meta Runners and sunset paradise both those shows also use motion capture and actually looks pretty amazing in it actually if you look back at the Murder Drone pilot it also used motion capture before they decided to change it to 3d animation, and also for that rose tinted glasses viewing on AI that is sorta becoming true cause animators are actually finding a way to use AI that for effects that actually need improvement instead of using AI to replace the people that can (Im not good at explaining but I hope you get what I mean)

[@WoodyDevs]

I was the engineer on Pumpkin Potions Unreal debut! Thank you for using it as an example. That was a delightful surprise!

[@ericfieldman]

AI brings to light the question of how much impressiveness should affect our opinion of a thing because before I knew what it looked like and could never sniff it out, I was really impressed by the visuals, but that was from the result and not an engagement with core ideas or concepts presented in the piece through the medium, and now when I see pretty much any recognizably AI thing I don't care much because it's so hard to quantify what it actually took to make it happen, and I'm recognizing now how rarely something is done with it with a purpose other than trying to impress or appeal to certain senses without putting in the fundamental work of learning the old mediums. I don't think every use of AI is going to be completely unethical or bad or stupid or what have you, but I do think using it as a primary tool appeals a lot more to the most cynical perspective of the arts than traditional planners; that there's nothing new under the sun so why not just hodge podge old stuff together, and that we can get results quickly for low cost and flip it for profit. And I think with all the tools available to individuals, every artist would be wise to look into broad indie options as a fallback or goal, not because AI is better, but because you don't want to be working for a company that thinks it is purely because then it can replace you.

[@fusion1203]

When I saw the polar express I didn’t find it uncanny I just thought it looked amazing seeing such detailed models for an animated movie

[@4our4u]

😢 i needed that end part. thank you "we've been here before" its crazy how comforting that was

[@lucarrie]

9:45 I see you with that Killer Queen/Kira background. impeccable taste

[@JNSStudios2]

Wait I’m early in the video, did you mocap yourself for this? Edit: Called it Edit 2: that comparison between the rise of motion capture and the current rise of AI is very apt. I’ve always viewed AI stuff as something that will definitely become a tool in the future (even if its sources are questionable) instead of just the “output generator” that everyone is hyping it up to be.

[@imaginationanimations1508]

Thanks so much, all your videos interest me and I hope to know as much and animate as well as you! Also I really like the detail of putting the sources of clip above it. It really helps

[@tombanditnook9230]

I’m glad people can appreciate real time motion capture it’s so cool! (when used appropriately of course). I have a VR headset and motion trackers and it’s pretty fun to jump around as any character I could think of.

[@MuuToo]

I remember in early 2020 riiiiight before covid lockdowns, I had gotten into vr and had just purchased some full body Vive trackers, and had opted to show it off to some people at my college since home motion capture was still pretty new. Good times.

[@Max_Brass]

That bit at the end really helped me feel better about my future as an artist. Thank you for the dose of optimism ❤

[@HiHi-oc3gh]

Would’ve loved to see motion captured Gimberly in this video

[@Funhaus_Fr34k]

man this honestly gets me kinda hopeful for the state of artists now, cuz now I have something to hope for that ai doesn't replace artists & instead just ends up like motion capture

[@sinedddmk8996]

7:57 I saw the tutu wrestling outfit and I was deprecating the whole thing already "oh this is cringy, they are appealing for their audience to get invested over cute girl persona while everything is tam-" and then that sick move just happened and it was an instant turn to "THAT WAS SICK" awesome and most defenitly deserving of praise, even if an act Thank you for enlightening

[@ericbazinga]

Another unexpected application for motion capture is social applications like VRChat, using motion capture to represent oneself and their movements as an avatar in virtual environments. People there don't tend to use a smart suit (at least afaik), since their VR headset and controllers are already tracking their head and hands/arms, instead they'll get a set of Vive motion trackers (usually three, one for the waist and one on each foot) in order to achive "full-body tracking". Most users stop there, but some take it further by buying additional trackers (e.g. knees, elbows, chest, etc) and/or buying headsets that support eye and face tracking. I've even seen people use headbands that read brain waves in order to puppet things like animal ears or tails. And all of this is done simply so a user's avatar looks more lifelike. It's not really about realism, most avatars are anime-styled and/or anthropomorphic animals, but moreso just about increasing one's immersion in their environment, having all the main parts of their avatar tracked, being able to provide nonverbal body language cues to others, it helps the platform feel less like a game and more like just another place for people to gather and socialize.

[@octavgg]

all you have to do to answer that question is look at the mocap in sonic 06

[@OrimaJam]

That and sonic unleashed too

[@octavgg]

@@OrimaJam yes but sonic unleashed is actually a good game (imo)

[@sunshinerainbow8469]

there were also some cutscenes that were also mocap in sonic adventure 2

[@mechadeka]

Everyone in the mocap Sonic cutscenes moves like a toku suit actor lol

[@OrimaJam]

@@octavgg doesn’t matter what you think of unleashed, it still uses motion capture

[@mysticalkeyblade759]

Probably because it looks uncanny and unappealing at times

[@thegiftedfire3470]

Imagine Spider Verse uses motion capture for all of the characters.

[@thetokutickler]

That's why my favorite motion capture movie is definitely Monster House. It embraces the creepy and uncanny feeling and uses it to its advantage.

[@0memega]

I couldn't even tell the motion capture with the avatar because you acted out your motions in an animated way, good job.

[@trentonmoyer5048]

That was really intriguing! I had kinda thought of motion capture as it’s own medium/division of animation and had never realized that it initially posed as such a threat to the industry. I’m very glad you shed some light on that, because I’m still stunned that I had never heard of that being a concern until now.

[@eendsofthearth]

Fantastic video!!! I really appreciate your approach to these videos in all aspects. I definitely agree as far as mocap being used as a cost cutting feature vs live applications as a digital suit. There's also a lot of genuinely amazing ways of performing virtually live, like you said. Which is something animation can't replicate, of course because animation takes time. Regis Altare's 3D cello concert comes to mind as a really beautiful usage of live performance.

[@plotcoalition]

Just a note as a rokoko user, they are a wonderful company and everyone I've interacted with is great! The equipment isn't perfect, but it also puts more on the user to learn more about animation. oh! They are also fantastic about releasing regular software updates to make the suit perform better :)

[@SZvenM]

I appreciate that note at the end a lot. Very cool video!

[@kenchan123456]

From the bottom of my heart, thank you for using proper citations in your video and not just in the description. Proper citations are so important in today’s age where spreading misinformation is so easy and no one has the bandwidth to fact check things themselves. I feel like I can take your videos a lot more seriously seeing actual citations implemented properly.

[@prcervi]

i kinda did wonder what happened to motion capture from when i saw it as a kid to now cause it went really quiet after it's explosion onto the scene and i genuinely can't wait for the AI bubble to pop, glazing and shading my work gets rather annoying when i'd rather just finish and post, though if the corporate thieves want to steal i'll be damned if they don't get something as laced with artifacting cyanide as posible

[@1aMeya259]

9:29 "Oooooohhhhh fiinnngeeerrssssss" :D love it.

[@audreyfaye5262]

I was just talking to my animation friend about this last night! So funny that you posted this today

[@ChubbyCheekMan]

The new Dragon Ball game actually uses motion capture, and it looks a tad bit odd bc its goku and co., but i think it can be tinkered with a bit so that it looks more like what toriyama would actually pose his characters to

[@hoxiipoxii56]

Could you do a video on why character topology is the way it is and how it evolved through the years? I love the way yiu explain stuff, you're my favourite 3d content creator on KZbin!

[@carlitosscova7451]

Absolutely love you videos! Animation and the methods and technology behind it have always been fascinating.

[@laukir]

i didn't expect the last part, but thanks doodley. that was really comforting to know. guess i'll continue being an artist til the world ends :]

[@miracakesanim]

I was very happy to meet you at Lightbox. There is a painful unease in the industry right now, so this video is very well timed. I sincerely hope executives get their togethertogether soon.

[@tietunes]

great twist in your script! i look forward to your next lecture!

[@masonthemetalhead]

You know I needed this today. Thanks dude! Keep making things and keep being awesome.

[@XVI_The_Tower_XVI]

Excellent exploration of the execution of exact expressions through extant technology and examining its limitations.

[@domesticbacon]

Whenever you release a video, I wait until the next day to watch it. They’re the perfect thing to watch while having breakfast!

[@kubamed6434]

I don't know what to think of Doodley noticeabley looking away from the camera at 10:51

[@redwolf6334]

I saw that Calarts video not too long ago and the discussion on ai in the description and now I see you made a video onn exactly that, so cool!!!

[@LaurianeG.]

I honestly think Mocap films DO have potential, given that they were given time to mature and improve technology wise. Like the idea of mixing the natural and nuanced performance of a live actor with the endless visual possibilities of animation is a great way to mix mediums and could have gone somewhere.

[@majikerpfilms6282]

Something that I would love to add to this amazing video, is further discussion on digital costumes, vtubers and mo-caps application into KZbin/streaming entertainment. There’s a pretty well known KZbinr, TheRussainBagder, who uses MoCap to animate characters within SFM to help communicate and tell jokes. Recently I think he’s going a little over board, but it’s a really cool tool that he uses to show any and many forms of his comedy with his friends. Typically reenacting their jokes from streams or recordings.

[@ProjectHyper]

How come no one mentioned Red Dead Redemption during this video, probably the most balanced use of mocap, the animation was so good that it was basically a playable movie.

[@LauraLowe]

11:33 Caption mistake (script that isn't in the final cut)

[@doodley3d]

Oh damn, I thought I fixed that but I must not have saved my changes. Thanks!

[@davec8385]

An incrediblely level headed take combined with some fun history! Thbaks for sharing this video I hope you have a good rest of your day :)

[@WordsDeath]

Some thing too add is that mocap in video games and Vtubers can blend together in to almost one with VR. While most VR games would not fit, VRChat is basically this. It benefits from the live performance lenities provided to Vtubes and immersion of a video game (coherent world) to have real feeling 'animation'. The use of a very mature IK for full body tracking can make the motion much better than the jittery movements of all mocap technology but somewhat recreate (poorly) the kind of movement in animation. This is furthered by the so called Physbones which are able to give more life to the clothes (and hair) then most of the early mocap. Also it it can support face tracking the best results are from viseme shapes mixed with expressions to create a lot of dynamic expressions (when used correctly). It can even blend animation and mocap to together, with creators like Lolathon making these costumes come to life just as much if not more than pure mocap. While it would not be able to work for a complete movie (maybe) it is still great for many performances with many dancers using. Lastly, as one can see the the response to their movements in real time and its effects it makes it much easier to respond to actions (latency not withstanding). Just something I though would have fit into the discussion well as many VRChat content creators blur the line of Vtuber as they started close to the time of many Vtubers, but don't see themselves as part of that community (at least in the west) and with the rise of creators like Filian it should be considered more for the number of things that can be done. Also personally I find VRChat's avatars to usually just look way better than live mocap, mainly for the less tracking points and more IK used which better adapts proportions than most mocap. It may also be comfort or VR but that is another discussion. Real would love to see mocap done in vr to be used for more than just internet stuff. also is cheaper or same price to a mocap suit with more use.

[@girzarro]

i personally think that the janky animation is what adds to monster house's charm. as much as i love it as a movie, i fear that if it didn't look as uncanny and strange as it does it wouldn't be nearly as memorable. i also don't think it would have been able to pull off everything it aims for without the relatively easier animation style

[@Lawn_Clippings29]

6:00 damn, I didn't know bro got moves

[@raphaelmarquez9650]

Motion capture to CG animation is what rotoscoping is to 2D animation. Both are used to replicate real life.

[@fusion1203]

11:11 I always say this, ai is a tool not a replacment

[@1000Tomatoes]

6:14 what a great picture

[@jakelevinson7802]

I’m so glad someone agrees with me about the nature of really good animation or at least the very specific style that Chuck Jones was talking about. The more of state at our school the more I’ve realized how much of art is trying to take the principles of life, light shape, form, etc., etc., and exaggerate those principles to make something more realistic than the real. Even if it stylize., in my first year, I remember doing a study where I did all the math and was able to calculate how far a ball would fall and like all that stuff that I did all the math and it looked like shit and when I just did it by feel it looked so much better

[@nickdorenkamp959]

I think there are several reasons as to why motion capture didn't replace animation. One of those reasons being money obviously. And there's also the factor of not taking the time to learn how to use it properly. A great example of the worst use of the technology that I've heard of is in one of the worst animated movies of all time: Foodfight where the director wanted to combine the looney tunes style with motion capture; and the result was not good. As for some good examples, I would say gollum from lord of the rings and of course the Tom Hanks film the Polor Express. The reason I bring those two up is for one main reason: They took the time to learn how to use it by drawing from past experiences. Hell Andy Serkis literally made an acting career out of it. As for the topic of A.I. here's what I have to say which is while I respect the people who want to use it to help them draw or whatever they're creative endeavor maybe, however you don't learn anything by constantly relying on it. Edit: Also side note Adventures of Tintin really good use of mo cap. Almost made me think it was live action.

[@IcantdrawXD]

This reminds me of The Adventures of Tintin. I was blown away when I discovered it used motion capture.