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Real-time performance capture turns an actor’s live facial expressions and body movements into a rendered digital character, so the audience can see the performance as it happens. Cubic Motion demonstrated this in 2019 with a remotely performing actor whose digital character spoke to people in the room. The system was professional production technology, not a consumer app; an iPhone can offer a simpler, lower-fidelity taste of face-driven avatars.
What happened in the 2019 demonstration?
On August 5, 2019, Cubic Motion showed a live performance in which a remote actor’s movements drove a computer-generated character. The character delivered scripted lines, then broke the fourth wall and addressed individual spectators. Because it could respond to people in the room, the exchange was interactive rather than a pre-rendered scene. Futurism’s report and Digital Trends’ technical account describe the demonstration.
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The striking part was not simply that the character looked realistic. It was that viewers saw the performance appear as it happened, including the actor’s expressions and responses. As Cubic Motion president Andy Wood put it, “I’ve never seen a reaction like that.”
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The system turns a performer’s movements into controls for a digital character, then renders the result immediately. In a professional setup, body and face capture, tracking software, animation systems and a real-time engine work together. Epic describes the process as combining body and facial capture with immediate retargeting to a CG character in its overview of real-time performance capture.
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- Capture the performance: Cameras and other capture equipment observe the performer’s face and body.
- Track facial details: Computer vision detects facial features. Cubic Motion’s marker-less approach did not require visible facial markers, and machine-learning algorithms helped separate and track facial components.
- Solve and retarget the motion: Software translates the observations into animation controls and maps the performance onto the digital character.
- Render the result: A real-time engine displays the character immediately, letting a director or audience see the performance and interact with it without waiting for a later animation pass.
Digital Trends reported that Cubic Motion’s demonstration drove a finished render at about 60 frames per second. That is a figure reported for the 2019 work, not a guarantee for every setup. Its account also highlights details such as eye blinks and pupil movement, which marker-based facial systems may not capture directly when markers are absent from the eyes.
Is Cubic Motion the same as motion capture?
Cubic Motion’s technology is a form of motion capture, but “motion capture” covers many different workflows. Some systems use markers and record a performance for later cleanup. Cubic Motion’s Persona system was distinguished by marker-less facial tracking and its ability to drive a character in real time. The wider professional pipeline can include body-capture equipment and software from other companies as well as a rendering engine; Epic’s overview names Cubic Motion, 3Lateral, Digital Domain, Vicon and Unreal Engine as parts of that ecosystem.
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- FULL-BODY TRACKING MADE EASY: No need to wear a suit or go through a complicated setup. Simply strap on the lightweight sensors and follow the instructions on the apps. Calibration is minimal, just step forward. Motion capture starts immediately.
- MOVE FREELY: No base stations, no studio needed: Works even in small rooms. No dedicated space for cameras or sensors required. Wireless and untethered, you can freely use the space without field-of-view limitations.
- LIGHTWEIGHT AND EASY TO WEAR: Each sensor is small and lightweight, weighing only about 8g (0.28 oz). Simply attach the sensors to the designated body parts using the bands.
- READY FOR LONG SESSIONS: Supports up to 10 hour of continuous use. You can do other activities while wearing sensors.
- OPTIMAL APP OPTIONS: For VR use, the mocopi VR app (free) is available. For streaming and content creation, you can use the mocopi smartphone app (free) and/or the mocopi PC app (paid). Additionally, for content creation purposes, the XYN Motion Studio app (paid) provides full support for timeline editing and cloud management of motion data. Continuous improvements and new features are added through multiple updates each year.
Real-time output does not mean there is no technical work behind the scenes. Tracking, solving, retargeting and rendering must all keep up with the performer. It means the digital character can respond during the performance rather than only after an animation team has refined recorded footage.
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An iPhone X-series phone is a consumer-level approximation, not a substitute for Cubic Motion’s Persona setup. Its front-facing depth-sensing system enabled lower-fidelity facial self-scanning for Animoji and Memoji-style experiences, as Digital Trends noted in 2019. That can let you experiment with a face-driven avatar, but it does not reproduce the professional system’s facial detail, broader production pipeline or studio-level capture setup.
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For a reader who wants to try a simple animated likeness, a phone-based avatar feature is the approachable route. For a live, high-fidelity character performance that tracks facial nuance and body movement, the 2019 demonstration illustrates a substantially more specialized production system. Specific phone features and app availability can vary by device, software version and region.
How much does professional real-time facial capture cost?
Digital Trends reported that the high-fidelity camera rig used for this class of work would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. That figure describes the specialized rig, not a complete, itemized quote for every studio installation. A production setup also depends on capture hardware, software, integration and the target character and engine. Cubic Motion’s Persona was a professional system that other companies could license; the reporting does not establish a current price or licensing offer.
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What is the difference between MetaHuman and Cubic Motion?
Cubic Motion supplied performance-capture technology: it tracked an actor and translated the performance onto a digital counterpart. Epic announced on March 12, 2020, that Cubic Motion had joined Epic Games, describing Persona as an end-to-end hardware and software solution for real-time performance translation. Epic subsequently connected that work with 3Lateral and Unreal Engine in its digital-human efforts.
MetaHuman Creator addresses a different part of the process: creating a digital human. Epic’s 2021 announcement described it as a browser-based tool intended to reduce creation of a high-fidelity digital human from weeks or months to less than an hour. Epic also described Live Link Face and other performance-capture integrations for animation. Those statements describe Epic’s announced tool and intended workflow; they do not mean MetaHuman Creator itself is the same thing as Persona’s capture system or that every phone can deliver Persona-level capture. See Epic’s Cubic Motion announcement and MetaHuman Creator announcement.
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