Image Metrics is a 3D facial animation company headquartered in Manchester

Manchester

Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...

 and Santa Monica

Santa Monica, California

Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...

. Image Metrics are the makers of FACEWARE and Portable You and are providers of facial animation software and services to the visual effects industries.

About

The Image Metrics proprietary facial animation system is a Markerless motion capture method in which an actor's performance is filmed and a 3D animated model is generated directly from the raw images. The process uses pre-existing or newly recorded video of an actor’s facial performance shot with a video or High definition

High-definition video

High-definition video or HD video refers to any video system of higher resolution than standard-definition video, and most commonly involves display resolutions of 1,280×720 pixels or 1,920×1,080 pixels...

 camera. All detail seen in the recorded video is then analyzed and mapped onto a computer-generated 3D model

3D modeling

In 3D computer graphics, 3D modeling is the process of developing a mathematical representation of any three-dimensional surface of object via specialized software. The product is called a 3D model...

, including the detailed movements of teeth, tongue, lips and eyes.

The Image Metrics animation process captures facial details like eye movement, lip and tongue synching, subtle expressions and skin textures that can be compromised in the use of traditional motion capture

Motion capture

Motion capture, motion tracking, or mocap are terms used to describe the process of recording movement and translating that movement on to a digital model. It is used in military, entertainment, sports, and medical applications, and for validation of computer vision and robotics...

 methods. Advanced mapping technology allows Image Metrics to deliver facial animation results up to five times faster than motion capture

Motion capture

Motion capture, motion tracking, or mocap are terms used to describe the process of recording movement and translating that movement on to a digital model. It is used in military, entertainment, sports, and medical applications, and for validation of computer vision and robotics...

 methods and ten times faster than key frame

Key frame

A key frame in animation and filmmaking is a drawing that defines the starting and ending points of any smooth transition. They are called "frames" because their position in time is measured in frames on a strip of film...

 animation (although this figure is subjective, since Keyframe Animation can be used to produce very different results.)

History

Image Metrics was founded in 2000 in Manchester by Gareth Edwards, Kevin Walker and Alan Brett. The Image Metrics office in Santa Monica was opened six years later.

The Image Metrics performance capture animation process was developed over the past seven years by an in-house team of physicists, programmers and animators. Since its inception, Image Metrics facial animation technology has been applied in over 40 video games, movies and commercials worldwide.

Image Metrics technology was also used to animate the deceased actor Richard Burton

Richard Burton

Richard Burton, CBE was a Welsh actor. He was nominated seven times for an Academy Award, six of which were for Best Actor in a Leading Role , and was a recipient of BAFTA, Golden Globe and Tony Awards for Best Actor. Although never trained as an actor, Burton was, at one time, the highest-paid...

 for a computer-generated encore performance. The company provided the modeling and facial animation for a photo-realistic, 11-foot 3D hologram of the late Burton for the Live on Stage! production of "Jeff Wayne’s Musical Version of The War of The Worlds."

Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds

Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds is a 1978 concept album by Jeff Wayne, retelling the story of The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. Its format is progressive rock and string orchestra, using narration and leitmotifs to carry the story via rhyming melodic lyrics that express...

 Image Metrics animated a Richard Burton

Richard Burton

Richard Burton, CBE was a Welsh actor. He was nominated seven times for an Academy Award, six of which were for Best Actor in a Leading Role , and was a recipient of BAFTA, Golden Globe and Tony Awards for Best Actor. Although never trained as an actor, Burton was, at one time, the highest-paid...

 in his mid 30's to recreate his role as journalist George Herbert. Image Metrics completed a total of 23 minutes of facial animation synchronized to the original audio recording of the international star of stage and screen.

Credits

Image Metrics has created facial animation for feature films including The Wolfman (2010), Meet Dave

Meet Dave

Meet Dave is a 2008 American family comedy film directed by Brian Robbins and starring Eddie Murphy. The film was co-written by Bill Corbett and Rob Greenberg...

 (2008), Foodfight!

Foodfight!

Foodfight! is an unreleased computer-animated film produced by Threshold Entertainment and directed by Larry Kasanoff. The film features the voices of Charlie Sheen, Hilary Duff, Wayne Brady and Eva Longoria. Threshold has released a trailer for the film as part of their work on their website....

 (unreleased) and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is a 2007 fantasy film directed by David Yates and based on the novel of the same name by J. K. Rowling. It is the fifth instalment in the Harry Potter film series, written by Michael Goldenberg and produced by David Heyman and David Barron...

 (2007). In addition to its work with feature films, Image Metrics has created facial animation for a number of popular video games including Red Dead Redemption, Devil May Cry 4

Devil May Cry (series)

Devil May Cry is a series of five action hack and slash video games set in the modern day. The series was developed by Capcom and created by Hideki Kamiya. Originally intended to be a sequel in Capcom's Resident Evil series, Devil May Cry was such a radical departure from the series' style that it...

, Facial Lair, SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs - Combined Assault and Fireteam Bravo 2

SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo 2

SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo 2 is a video game for the PlayStation Portable handheld and the sequel to SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo. The game was released in North America on November 7, 2006. Fireteam Bravo 2 features an entirely new campaign, multiplayer maps, and new features...

, Bully

Bully (video game)

Bully, also known as Canis Canem Edit for the PAL PlayStation 2 version, is an open world video game released by Rockstar Vancouver for the PlayStation 2 on 17 October 2006 in North America, and 25 October 2006 in the United Kingdom...

, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories is a 2006 sandbox-style action video game developed by Rockstar Leeds in association with Rockstar North. It was published by Rockstar Games for the PlayStation Portable in late 2006 and later for the PlayStation 2 in March 2007. The game is the eighth...

, Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror, 24: The Game

24: The Game

24: The Game is a third-person shooter video game, based on the FOX television series, 24. The game was developed by Sony Computer Entertainment's Cambridge Studios and was published by 2K Games for PlayStation 2. It was announced on March 30, 2005 and first released in North America on February...

, Call of Duty 2

Call of Duty 2

Call of Duty 2 is a first-person shooter video game and the second installment in the critically acclaimed Call of Duty series. It was developed by Infinity Ward and published by Activision. It was released on October 25, 2005 for Microsoft Windows and on November 22, 2005 as a launch game for the...

, Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories

Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories

Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories is a 2005 sandbox-style action video game developed by Rockstar North and Rockstar Leeds. It is the ninth game in the Grand Theft Auto series...

, The Warriors

The Warriors (video game)

The Warriors is a beat 'em up video game published by Rockstar Games. It was released on October 17, 2005 for PlayStation 2 and Xbox, and February 12, 2007 for PlayStation Portable. The game is based on the 1979 film, The Warriors...

, Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, The Getaway: Black Monday

The Getaway: Black Monday

The Getaway: Black Monday is an open world action video game, developed by SCE London Studio and distributed by Team Soho, it was released in 2004 for the PlayStation 2. It is set in London and take its cues from British gangster movies such as Get Carter, The Long Good Friday and Lock, Stock and...

, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is a 2004 open world action video game developed by British games developer Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the third 3D game in the Grand Theft Auto video game franchise, the fifth original console release and eighth game overall...

, and Grand Theft Auto IV

Grand Theft Auto IV

Grand Theft Auto IV is a 2008 open world action video game published by Rockstar Games, and developed by British games developer Rockstar North. It has been released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 video game consoles, and for the Windows operating system...

.