PhaseSpace Joins the Studio at SIGGRAPH 2010 Inviting New Artists to Experience the State of the Art in CG Content Creation
Press Release from PhaseSpace Inc.
San Francisco, CA: July 14, 2010 - PhaseSpace Inc. is inviting SIGGRAPH attendees to step into the shoes of filmmaking luminaries such as James Cameron and Robert Zemeckis, directing actors and guiding the action through a virtual camera using state-of-the-art optical motion- capture technology. This year again, PhaseSpace is joining a ‘who’s who’ of industry players in the SIGGRAPH 2010 Studio during the annual conference, July 25-29 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The Studio will provide students, as well as established artists with a unique opportunity to work on their own projects with the same tools as those used at the world’s leading facilities.
“The Studio provides a wonderful space where conference attendees can work under the guidance of experts using the very latest technologies,” said Gene Cooper, SIGGRAPH 2010 Studio chair. “Best of all, they can take their work with them when they leave, so it’s not just a learning opportunity; it’s a place to get work done.”
Examples of tools available to attendees include large-format, high-color printers from Hewlett Packard, 3D CAD software, such as Rhino, 3D solid printers, motion capture from PhaseSpace, and many others.
“Under normal circumstances, recording just five minutes of motion capture might cost a filmmaker $10,000 or more,” said Tracy McSheery, VP of PhaseSpace. “Here, directors can bring in their scripts and get to work. We provide the actors, computers and software. The director can shoot the sequence for free.”
The benefits of The Studio to filmmakers and content creators extend beyond the material that students can bring home with them. “The creative process is tightly connected to the director and their experience,” explained McSheery. “We want to open up the new generation of artists to the latest technologies and let them discover the capabilities of these tools for themselves.”
One example of this is the use of virtual cameras to explore ideas on CG or live-action sets. “Virtual cameras have been around for a while,” said McSheery, “but people have become much more aware of the possibilities they offer with the success of Avatar where James Cameron made extensive use of virtual cameras throughout preproduction and production. This has opened a lot of eyes to the possibilities – both to work more creatively, and more efficiently.”
At The Studio attendees will be able to work with the advanced new Magic Window virtual camera from PhaseSpace. The Magic Window works wirelessly via an HP Touchsmart laptop to provide the director or cinematographer with real-time images for different camera positions allowing him or her to adjust the camera and actors’ positions right on set. With a second copy of Autodesk Motion Builder running simultaneously on the Touchsmart, the director or cinematographer can view the actors within the virtual set. “For big pictures, this kind of real-time visualization has the potential to save millions of dollars in production costs,” added McSheery
“We’re delighted that PhaseSpace could join The Studio again this year,” said Gene Cooper. “It will be exciting to see what the attendees will create with educational opportunities PhaseSpace has planned for them."
The Studio takes place during SIGGRAPH 2010 at the Los Angeles Convention Center from July 25 - 29. For more information visit http://www.siggraph.org/s2010 [1]
About PhaseSpace Inc.
Founded in 1994, PhaseSpace was the first company to introduce advanced motion-capture technologies at an affordable price point. The PhaseSpace Impulse System makes 3D optical motion capture viable for small companies, universities, facilities and individuals. PhaseSpace utilizes custom optics, Smart Active LED markers with unique digital IDs and synthesized digital signal processor (DSP) technology to deliver real-time motion capture. PhaseSpace sets a new standard for motion capture data quality, which can save literally years of person- hours in clean-up time on large productions or complex research projects. PhaseSpace Inc. is a privately held company based in San Francisco. For more information, visit www.phasespace.com [2].
Links:
[1] http://www.siggraph.org/s2010
[2] http://www.phasespace.com