OMG’s Vicon used in Hollywood blockbuster, Gravity

Out of this world motion capture by Vicon
Framestore invests in 16 Vicon T40 cameras to enable unbeatable pre-visualisation for space scenes

OMG plc, (AIM: OMG), the technology group providing image understanding products for the entertainment, defence, life science and engineering industries, announces that its motion capture technology specialists arm, Vicon has used its T-Series motion capture cameras on the acclaimed 3D science fiction thriller and space blockbuster, Gravity.

Gravity was directed, co-written, co-produced and co-edited by Alfonso Cuarón. It stars Sandra Bullock and George Clooney as astronauts who dramatically survive the mid-orbit destruction of a space shuttle and attempt to return to Earth. It was released on 3 October in the US - achieving a record-breaking opening weekend - and 8 November in the UK.

Framestore invested in the T40 cameras and integrated them with Blade – Vicon’s innovative data capture and data processing system – to help create complex and extremely realistic visual effects. ‘The pinpoint accuracy of today’s motion capture cameras have given directors the confidence that they can now deliver on their creative vision,’ said Imogen Moorhouse, CEO, Vicon.

As Mark Hughes said in a Gravity review for Forbes, ‘you’ve never seen anything like the visual experience of this film. It’s akin to the visual effects leaps represented by 2001: A Space Odyssey, Star Wars, and Avatar. So realistic and breath taking, in fact, that you’ll forget you’re watching special effects, and feel as if the movie were actually shot in space.’

‘This was Framestore’s most ambitious project to date and involved working with world class actors. So the motion capture had to be in the same league, with to-the-point accuracy and the best post-processing flexibility. Equally, it was important that the crew were familiar with the technology and it would work exactly as expected. The Vicon cameras enabled outstanding clarity and realism in an unfamiliar environment, making the unknown appear familiar and believable,’ said Ben Guthrie, motion capture supervisor at Framestore.

Commenting on the smash hit film Nick Bolton, OMG plc Chief Executive said:

“It’s great to see the extraordinary results that have been achieved by Framestore using Vicon technology.  Framestore should be truly proud of their work on Gravity and we are delighted that they will be using our system on another hotly anticipated sci-fi film, Jupiter Ascending.”

Contact us.