Face
3D scanning for animation - From woman to werewolf
When the computer company Lani Pixels A/S were to convince an American production company that they could create a lifelike animated face, Zebicon was contacted.
Problem
"The task is to scan a human face to create a 3D figure, which matches a real face the best way possible. This way it is possible to make an unnoticed transformation from the actress' face to the 3D figure, while the 3D figure tracks the movements of the real face,” says manager from Lani Pixels, Kim Pagel.
By using 3D scanning Zebicon digitized the acress' face to create an exact copy in 3D. Subsequently, the digital face was transformed in to a werewolf head step by step in realistic close-ups.
Solution
The primary step in building up a 3D figure of the face, was to create an STL file, also called a polygon model. Data from the scanning resulted in a fine grid of 125.000 polygons, connecting all single measurement points, and took approximately five minutes.
On the basis of the polygon file, the animators at Lani Pixels added texture to the 3D figure to make the depiction of the face as realistic and lifelike as possible.
3D scanning is a technology, which can create a digital 3D model of a physical part. The technology is primarily used for reverse engineering or quality control and part measurement.