American Cinematographer - May 2022 - 61

AMERICAN CINEMATOGRAPHER ASCMAG.COM
Top: The crew at action-design studio SuperAlloy develops a stunt
with a performer wearing an inertial-sensor mocap suit. Bottom: Habib
Zargarpour (with camera) and Isaac Krauss (white shirt) use a vcam
system to capture a Unity-driven virtual environment, while introducing
a CG character via motion-captured performer Corey Malone.
Then, the cinematographer can
change and experiment with camera
language " without our having
to put the performers through the
same stunts over and over again.
It's a far more efficient workflow,
while also providing something
that the DP can actually use and
interact with directly. "
Multiuser game-engine vcam
capabilities also enable SuperAlloy
to decentralize their visualization
efforts and collaborate
remotely, which shifted from an
option to a necessity following the
onset of the pandemic. " Working
remotely enables a different way
of conceiving and working simultaneously
on the same project, "
Swartout says. " There's less
fragmentation because you're all
working on the same scene, and
everyone can drop-in assets and
move cameras and characters
around. It's a shared immediacy
that you can't get from looking at
storyboards. "
Incorporating Real Optics
The degree of technical accuracy
required for previs vcam imagery
depends on what the filmmakers
are aiming to accomplish. For
rough blocking-out of action,
a lens' focal length, a desired
aspect ratio and an image sensor
is generally sufficient information
to create accurate previs. In cases
where much more precise simulation
is needed, such as tight
integration with digital characters,
or with a physical set that will be
extended, the data can be accurate
down to the unique characteristics
of an individual lens.
Optics manufacturers such as
Arri and Cooke offer smart lenses
- real-world lenses with internal
encoders created to assist with
VFX processes by supplying live
telemetry that's specific to each
lens - which are now proving
quite helpful for vcam pipelines.
If the lens in use doesn't
contain smart connectivity, the
data can be derived manually,
during prep, by first shooting a
calibration image of test charts.
Says Frager, " The latest update to
Unreal added the ability to bring a
live-action shot with a calibration
chart into the engine and use it
to create a distortion map for the
virtual camera, which will match
the real lens perfectly. " These
lenses without smart connectivity
can also coordinate with focus/
iris/zoom (FIZ) encoders, which
provide additional real-world-lens
data to the vcam.
Vcam Goals
Vcam enables the leveraging of
existing real-world experience to
bring the human touch to virtual
cinematography. As with many
areas in the rapidly developing
world of virtual production,
the future promises even more
striking advancements and new
workflows.
" The ultimate goal for virtual
camera is [to serve] as a portal to
a digital world that you can interact
with in your own space, " says
Kilkenny. " We want you to be able
to stand on a virtual stage and
click around and move lights and
other aspects of the environment,
and then see precisely where
they are in the physical space.
That's a powerful tool for every
creative discipline. "
Says Zargarpour, " Having
everything in real-time gives you
faster and better ways to plan
a production, instead of having
to wait for everything to render
" Our goal is to involve
directors of photography
early and get these tools
into their hands. "
when you make changes. We're
focused on the ease of iteration.
You can [also] do your basic camera
coverage in one take, then go
back and redo just the focus or
switch out a lens, but keep everything
else. "
Ruhe also sees plenty of
benefits in these tools for the
cinematographer. " Vcam helped
us figure out which elements of
our set we needed to build, and it
informed stunts and all of the wire
work, " he says. " The stunt team
could program their wire-control
system by feeding data from the
3D animation we created. Virtual
camera is an incredibly helpful
tool that enables us to move
faster and more efficiently on the
set. "
MAY 2022 / 61
TOP PHOTO COURTESY OF SUPERALLOY. BOTTOM PHOTO COURTESY OF UNITY.
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American Cinematographer - May 2022

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