People have been learning and developing new ways of working so we are able to continue our roles. Matthew Murdoch: Actually, there has been a greater sense of community as everyone has been pulling together to get the wheels rolling again. Social distancing provides the same challenge when we need to replace a broken marker or fix a prop – it makes all of these small tasks take longer, which can be frustrating but it’s all needed to ensure that everyone is kept as safe as possible.ĬA: Have there been any unexpected benefits or improvements to the process that came about as a result of doing mocap during these strange times? This limits the team’s ability to interact with the performer and makes placing markers (the dots on the motion capture suits) a real challenge as we’re directing someone who usually has limited knowledge of the subject to place the markers correctly. Matthew Murdoch: The biggest challenge we have currently is social distancing. The studio itself is also wiped down when required.ĬA: What do you think is your biggest challenge doing mocap work currently? We also provide masks, hand sanitiser, and wipes to ensure that everyone has any PPE on hand for when it’s needed. In addition, that performer has to bring someone from their household to the studio who will then act as the motion capture technician’s assistant during the shoot to keep social distancing possible and everyone safe. We usually would have around three performers at once in the volume, but with current measures we now only have one performer. Matthew Murdoch: Our motion capture shoots currently feel less interactive and are on a smaller scale then we would have done pre pandemic. With the safety restrictions we employed it also put some strain on my role and capability to carry out that role – it took some time to adjust to the new way of working.ĬA: What is it like doing mocap work currently? What measures have you introduced to try and make the process as safe for everyone involved as possible? I was glad to be back but it felt quite empty without the rest of my team. Matthew Murdoch: It was quite odd, honestly. Our team’s workload did suffer, however, as motion capture does involve close interaction with one another, but we used the time to delve deeper into research and development so at least it was productive!ĬA: While the rest of Creative Assembly continues to work fully remotely, some of the mocap team have been back to the studio out of necessity ( while following appropriate government safety guidelines and restrictions). What was it like being back in the mocap studio again? Matthew Murdoch: Personally, I was actually Ill during the start of the lockdown, but from what I’ve been told people were quickly taken out of the office and helped to establish home working within a week – it was a monumental feat that our IT department achieved! We are a small team so we always worked on the same goal together.ĬA: What was it like when the lockdown was introduced here in the UK in March 2020? Matthew Murdoch: A typical day was spent improving the overall flow of the pipeline we use in the studio, planning or conducting motion capture shoots, or research and development into further technologies and procedures we can employ as a studio. One day it could be a typical human soldier fighting with a sword and shield, the next it could be a Troll Hag with a giant net club!ĬA: What was your day-to-day routine like before the pandemic? We as a team need to look at the units that are being recorded and help guide the performer to reach the desired outcome. Matthew Murdoch: Motion capture for Total War is an exciting field as our games cover so many different styles of motion and includes some truly fantastical creatures. I’ve been working for Creative Assembly for just over a year now, and before that I was a student at Portsmouth University.ĬA: Could you please tell us a little about doing mocap (and animation) for Total War? Matthew Murdoch: Hey there! I’m Matthew Murdoch, an associate motion capture technician. This week we chatted with associate motion capture technician Matthew Murdoch about how him and the team are dealing with game development during lockdown – check out the full interview below.ĬA: Hi there! First of all, could you please introduce yourself? The global pandemic continues – and so does work on Total War games!
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |