MoCap with Steve Lall on 14th January

Motion Capture with Steven Lall

Our Second Year animation students are back at Escape Studios, and will be soon be tackling their Animation Specialism module, in which students begin to focus on one particular aspect of the animation pipeline.

In this module we bring a variety of tutors in to the classroom to explore different parts of the animation pipeline.

On 14th and 15th January our students will get a masterclass in Performance Capture animation, taught by our very own Studio Assistant Steven Lall.

Steve Lall teaches MoCap at Escape Studios

Steven Lall
Steven Lall took our short course in 3D animation and then became a Studio Assistant at Escape Studios, helping to teach junior animators, and continuing to polish his demo reel.

Performance Capture
Performance Capture, aka Motion Capture, aka "MoCap", is a growing part of the animation industry. It is something our students need to be able to work with effectively, as many animation studios - and especially games studios - rely heavily on MoCap for their animation pipeline.




MoCap with Norman
Steve will demonstrate to our students how to use MoCap data, carefully cleaning up the original curves but, at the same time, not losing the essence of the original performance.

Watch the video above, and you can see how Steve has used After Effects to create a "B panel" in the top right hand corner, showing what the original raw MoCap data looked like, in this case re-targeted onto the free Norman rig.

The advantage of this approach is that it shows the animator's work process - any potential recruiter can see for themselves the original performance, and also understand what Steve has done with it to improve the animation and bring it to life.

As Steve put it: “Performance Capture is a really exciting area for animators to explore. Mocap is often used in Films and Games, and although Mocap can seem like it replaces a lot of the traditional animation technique, it's a process that's fascinating and fun.”


Above is some MoCap work by 2nd year animator Sebastian Kuder, completed in Steve's 2018 class.

CR5001 - Animation Specialism
Animation Specialism is the third module in the 2019-20 academic year. In this module, students to explore a subject specialism of their own choice. This could be character animation or creature animation, or even a related discipline such as storyboarding or character design.

CR5001 is a very varied module, as we bring in guest tutors to deliver specialist areas of teaching, allowing students to push their creative skills and explore a wide range of creative choices.

The Specialism module is also where we get ready for the Studio Project that starts later in the year, where second year animation students collaborate in teams, contributing their own unique skillset to the group project. 

2nd, 3rd and 4th year at Escape Studios
To see what's in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th year at Escape Studios, follow these links:

• Second year at Escape Studios
• Third year at Escape Studios. 
• Fourth and final year, (integrated MArt)

The Escape Studios Animation Blog offers a personal view on the art of animation and visual effects. To apply for our BA/MArt in 3D Animation, follow this link.  To apply for our storyboarding evening class, visit this page here.  For the next 12 week animation course, click here.