Mova Contour is a multi-camera high resolution
facial capture system originally developed by former
Apple Computer
Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, in Silicon Valley. It is best known for its consumer electronics, software, and services. Founded in 1976 as Apple Computer Co ...
engineer
Steve Perlman. It records surfaces (specifically of actors' faces) digitally, by using fluorescent makeup and
stereo triangulation, allowing for very detailed digitization and manipulation. The system captures images which are then used to generate dense per frame surface reconstructions. It then generates a temporally coherent mesh by tracking an invisible random pattern of fluorescent makeup that is applied to the capture surface.
Mova technology was first used in ''
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button'' for building a realistic 3D face model of
Brad Pitt
William Bradley Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. In a Brad Pitt filmography, film career spanning more than thirty years, Pitt has received list of awards and nominations received by Brad Pitt, numerous a ...
. The first film credit that Mova technology received was for its use in
The Incredible Hulk to capture
Edward Norton
Edward Harrison Norton (born August 18, 1969) is an American actor, producer, director, and screenwriter. After graduating from Yale College in 1991 with a degree in history, he worked for a few months in Japan before moving to New York City ...
's expressions and
superimpose
Superimposition is the placement of one thing over another, typically so that both are still evident. Superimpositions are often related to the mathematical procedure of superposition.
Audio
Superimposition (SI) during sound recording and repro ...
them onto the
Hulk
The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of ''The Incredible Hulk (comic book), The Incredible Hulk ...
.
It has subsequently been used in over 15 feature films and games. However, in recent years it attracted controversy due to a series of lawsuits filed by Perlman over its use in motion pictures such as ''
Guardians of the Galaxy
The Guardians of the Galaxy are a fictional superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.
Comic book teams 1969 team
The 1969 version of the Guardians of the Galaxy (1969 team), Guardians of the Galaxy were the origi ...
'', ''
Avengers: Age of Ultron'', and ''
Beauty and the Beast
"Beauty and the Beast" is a fairy tale written by the French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in (''The Young American and Marine Tales'').
Villeneuve's lengthy version was abridged, rewritten, and publish ...
''.
References
External links
Official website of Mova Contour
Film and video technology
Digital movie cameras
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