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124-567: Andrew Clement Serkis (born 20 April 1964) is an English actor and filmmaker. He is best known for his motion capture roles comprising motion capture acting, animation and voice work for computer-generated characters such as Gollum in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy (2001–2003) and The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012), King Kong in the eponymous 2005 film , Caesar in the Planet of

248-534: A Golden Globe nomination for his portrayal of serial killer Ian Brady in the British television film Longford (2006) and was nominated for a BAFTA for his portrayal of new wave and punk rock musician Ian Dury in the biopic Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll (2010). In 2020, Serkis received the BAFTA Award for Outstanding British Contribution To Cinema . In 2021, he won a Daytime Emmy Award for

372-684: A box office failure of Mars Needs Moms . Television series produced entirely with motion capture animation include Laflaque in Canada, Sprookjesboom and Cafe de Wereld in The Netherlands, and Headcases in the UK. Virtual reality and Augmented reality providers, such as uSens and Gestigon , allow users to interact with digital content in real time by capturing hand motions. This can be useful for training simulations, visual perception tests, or performing virtual walk-throughs in

496-405: A neo-noir third-person / shooter video game called My Eyes On You , using motion capture in order to animate its main character, Jordan Adalien, and along with non-playable characters. Out of the three nominees for the 2006 Academy Award for Best Animated Feature , two of the nominees ( Monster House and the winner Happy Feet ) used motion capture, and only Disney · Pixar 's Cars

620-406: A 3D environment. Motion capture technology is frequently used in digital puppetry systems to drive computer-generated characters in real time. Gait analysis is one application of motion capture in clinical medicine . Techniques allow clinicians to evaluate human motion across several biomechanical factors, often while streaming this information live into analytical software. One innovative use

744-407: A 3D model: There are many applications of Motion Capture. The most common are for video games, movies, and movement capture, however there is a research application for this technology being used at Purdue University in robotics development. Video games often use motion capture to animate athletes, martial artists , and other in-game characters. As early as 1988, an early form of motion capture

868-487: A Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination, his co-star James Franco stated: "Andy Serkis is the undisputed master of the newest kind of acting called 'motion capture,' and it is time that Serkis gets credit for the innovative artist that he is." In 2010, Serkis played Monkey, the lead character along with Lindsey Shaw in the videogame Enslaved: Odyssey to the West . In January 2011, it was confirmed that Serkis would reprise

992-423: A camera operator while the actor is performing. At the same time, the motion capture system can capture the camera and props as well as the actor's performance. This allows the computer-generated characters, images and sets to have the same perspective as the video images from the camera. A computer processes the data and displays the movements of the actor, providing the desired camera positions in terms of objects in

1116-484: A central spire where the three circles meet. The university's former logo is based on the spire. A plan existed to have a twin campus with another eight colleges to the east of the M6 motorway at Hazelrigg . This would have been linked to Bailrigg by a flyover. The plan was abandoned in the 1970s during a period of financial difficulties. In the south-west corner sits the library designed in 1964 by Tom Mellor and Partners,

1240-523: A comic book series titled Eternus , about Heracles , the son of Zeus , trying to identify Zeus's killer. The series is published by Thunder Books . In 2022, Serkis recorded a new audiobook version of the Terry Pratchett Discworld book Small Gods with Bill Nighy and Peter Serafinowicz . In 2002 and 2024, he would guest star on The Simpsons. Serkis was born to Catholic parents. An atheist since his teenage years, he

1364-851: A criminal called Maxwell in an episode of Pie in the Sky (1994). Serkis joined director Mike Leigh 's ensemble for two film productions, and appeared in the romantic comedy Loop (1997) alongside Susannah York . Serkis portrayed Victorian choreographer John D'Auban in Topsy-Turvy , a 1999 film about Gilbert and Sullivan 's creation of The Mikado . In 1999, Serkis played Bill Sikes in ITV 's adaptation of Oliver Twist . He appeared alongside Sacha Baron Cohen in The Jolly Boys' Last Stand in 2000. Serkis first came to wide public notice for his performance as Sméagol / Gollum , in The Lord of

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1488-415: A cyan light strobe instead of the typical IR light for minimum fall-off underwater and high-speed cameras with an LED light or with the option of using image processing. An underwater camera is typically able to measure 15–20 meters depending on the water quality, the camera and the type of marker used. Unsurprisingly, the best range is achieved when the water is clear, and like always, the measurement volume

1612-405: A few decades, which has given new insight into many fields. The vital part of the system, the underwater camera, has a waterproof housing. The housing has a finish that withstands corrosion and chlorine which makes it perfect for use in basins and swimming pools. There are two types of cameras. Industrial high-speed cameras can also be used as infrared cameras. Infrared underwater cameras come with

1736-599: A junction to the A6. The Bailrigg campus hosts a range of shops and services. Services on campus include Bailrigg post office, a health centre, a pharmacy, hairdressers, Lancaster University Homes office as well as many others. At the north end of campus, the university's Great Hall Complex comprises three venues open to both students and the public; the Peter Scott Gallery, the Nuffield Theatre and

1860-477: A low-budget independently made film, playing local crime lord Hoodwink, who terrorises an east London housing estate. For the role, Serkis shaved his head and had sessions lasting 20 hours each to have temporary tattoos stencilled onto his body. The film premiered at the 2007 Edinburgh Festival and released in the UK on 24 August. Also that year, Serkis provided the voiceover for Monkey Life , on Five broadcast for three weeks from 13 to 31 August 2007. This series

1984-494: A mathematical model into the silhouette. For movements you can not see a change of the silhouette, there are hybrid systems available that can do both (marker and silhouette), but with less marker. In robotics, some motion capture systems are based on simultaneous localization and mapping . Optical systems utilize data captured from image sensors to triangulate the 3D position of a subject between two or more cameras calibrated to provide overlapping projections. Data acquisition

2108-410: A number of academic departments, but are primarily social and accommodation facilities, each with its own bar, which forms part of the university's Commercial Services and is open when profitable. The university is divided into four faculties. Each faculty is led by a Dean, and each academic department by a Head of department. The various administrative and technical departments that exist outside of

2232-561: A performer wearing a full-body spandex/lycra suit designed specifically for motion capture . This type of system can capture large numbers of markers at frame rates usually around 120 to 160 fps although by lowering the resolution and tracking a smaller region of interest they can track as high as 10,000 fps. Active optical systems triangulate positions by illuminating one LED at a time very quickly or multiple LEDs with software to identify them by their relative positions, somewhat akin to celestial navigation. Rather than reflecting light back that

2356-512: A photogrammetric analysis tool in biomechanics research in the 1970s and 1980s, and expanded into education, training, sports and recently computer animation for television , cinema , and video games as the technology matured. Since the 20th century, the performer has to wear markers near each joint to identify the motion by the positions or angles between the markers. Acoustic, inertial, LED , magnetic or reflective markers, or combinations of any of these, are tracked, optimally at least two times

2480-408: A project known as "Design The Spine", with the aim of replacing the decaying wooden canopy, widening bottlenecks, and creating new landscaped green spaces. Alexandra Square is the university's main plaza. Named after the first chancellor, Princess Alexandra and is situated at the centre of the original campus. On the west side of the square is University House as well as various banks and shops. To

2604-557: A scene, with each tag uniquely identified to eliminate marker reacquisition issues. Since the system eliminates a high-speed camera and the corresponding high-speed image stream, it requires significantly lower data bandwidth. The tags also provide incident illumination data which can be used to match scene lighting when inserting synthetic elements. The technique appears ideal for on-set motion capture or real-time broadcasting of virtual sets but has yet to be proven. Motion capture technology has been available for researchers and scientists for

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2728-443: A senior academic but nowadays more usually a middle-ranking administrator or IT professional), a Dean and assistant deans (responsible for student discipline), together with a senior advisor, heading a team of College Advisors. These were previously known as Senior Tutor and College Tutors, but the titles were changed in 2011 to Advisor to avoid possible confusion with "Academic Advisors" in students' academic departments. Collectively,

2852-525: A subsidiary of Warner Brothers Pictures created especially to enable virtual cinematography , including photorealistic digital look-alikes for filming The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions movies, used a technique called Universal Capture that utilized 7 camera setup and the tracking the optical flow of all pixels over all the 2-D planes of the cameras for motion, gesture and facial expression capture leading to photorealistic results. Traditionally markerless optical motion tracking

2976-416: A unique identification of each marker for a given capture frame at a cost to the resultant frame rate. The ability to identify each marker in this manner is useful in real-time applications. The alternative method of identifying markers is to do it algorithmically requiring extra processing of the data. There are also possibilities to find the position by using colored LED markers. In these systems, each color

3100-464: A windy day, and it was freezing cold. Every time we opened a plan it blew away. And we said Christ! What are we going to do with these students, where are they going to sit in the sun and all that? Well, we decided, it's got to be cloisters. All of the buildings have got to touch at the ground. We then devised this system and it had an absolutely firm principle: it had a great spine down the middle where everybody walked. That led everywhere. The cars were on

3224-531: Is "drawn to the karmic possibilities of energy transference", specifically "the idea that your energy lives on after you". Serkis married actress Lorraine Ashbourne in July 2002. He lives in Crouch End , North London with Ashbourne and their three children: Ruby (b. 1998), Sonny (b. 2000) and Louis (b. 2004), all of whom are actors. Louis and Ruby starred in the 2019 film The Kid Who Would Be King and

3348-516: Is a public research university in Lancaster , Lancashire , England. The university was established in 1964 by royal charter , as one of several new universities created in the 1960s. The university was initially based in St Leonard's Gate in the city centre, before starting a move in 1967 to a purpose-built campus located on 300 acres (120 ha) at Bailrigg , 4 km (2.5 miles) to

3472-494: Is a production company and creative digital studio based in Ealing , London and is dedicated to invention of believable, emotionally engaging digital characters using Performance Capture technology, in which Serkis specialises. On 20 October 2012, the studio acquired rights to The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon , and in 2023 was in production with a new motion capture adaptation of George Orwell's Animal Farm . Serkis served as

3596-465: Is also dependent on the number of cameras. A range of underwater markers are available for different circumstances. Different pools require different mountings and fixtures. Therefore, all underwater motion capture systems are uniquely tailored to suit each specific pool instalment. For cameras placed in the center of the pool, specially designed tripods, using suction cups, are provided. Emerging techniques and research in computer vision are leading to

3720-619: Is assigned to a specific point of the body. One of the earliest active marker systems in the 1980s was a hybrid passive-active mocap system with rotating mirrors and colored glass reflective markers and which used masked linear array detectors. Active marker systems can further be refined by strobing one marker on at a time, or tracking multiple markers over time and modulating the amplitude or pulse width to provide marker ID. 12-megapixel spatial resolution modulated systems show more subtle movements than 4-megapixel optical systems by having both higher spatial and temporal resolution. Directors can see

3844-546: Is building a 'Health Innovation Campus' adjacent to the existing campus. The campus will create 2,000 jobs and boost the local economy by around £100 million. The £29.7 million contract for construction of the first building was awarded to BAM Construction in October 2017; construction began in December 2017 and was completed in summer 2020. The building is 80,000 square feet and required the construction of an access road with

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3968-502: Is generated externally, the markers themselves are powered to emit their own light. Since the inverse square law provides one quarter of the power at two times the distance, this can increase the distances and volume for capture. This also enables a high signal-to-noise ratio, resulting in very low marker jitter and a resulting high measurement resolution (often down to 0.1 mm within the calibrated volume). The TV series Stargate SG1 produced episodes using an active optical system for

4092-490: Is generated near the camera's lens. The camera's threshold can be adjusted so only the bright reflective markers will be sampled, ignoring skin and fabric. The centroid of the marker is estimated as a position within the two-dimensional image that is captured. The grayscale value of each pixel can be used to provide sub-pixel accuracy by finding the centroid of the Gaussian . An object with markers attached at known positions

4216-662: Is no line-of-sight to the satellites — such as in indoor environments. The majority of vendors selling commercial optical motion capture systems provide accessible open source drivers that integrate with the popular Robotic Operating System ( ROS ) framework, allowing researchers and developers to effectively test their robots during development. In the field of aerial robotics research, motion capture systems are widely used for positioning as well. Regulations on airspace usage limit how feasible outdoor experiments can be conducted with Unmanned Aerial Systems ( UAS ). Indoor tests can circumvent such restrictions. Many labs and institutions around

4340-536: Is open to the public free of charge. The Gallery is located on the Bailrigg campus and houses the university's international art collection, which includes Japanese and Chinese art, antiquities, works by twentieth-century British artists including works by artists from the St Ives School , Sir Terry Frost , Wilhelmina Barns-Graham , Barbara Hepworth and William Scott . Among other British artists whose work

4464-403: Is pose detection, which can empower patients during post-surgical recovery or rehabilitation after injuries. This approach enables continuous monitoring, real-time guidance, and individually tailored programs to enhance patient outcomes. Some physical therapy clinics utilize motion capture as an objective way to quantify patient progress. During the filming of James Cameron's Avatar all of

4588-398: Is represented are Norman Adams , Patrick Caulfield , Elisabeth Frink , Kenneth Martin and Winifred Nicholson . Within the last fifteen years works by Andy Goldsworthy , Peter Howson and Albert Irvin have been acquired. The university collection also includes prints by significant European artists such as Dürer , Miró , Ernst and Vasarely . Lancaster International Concert Series

4712-408: Is responsible for converting the light from the target area into a digital image that the tracking computer can process. Depending on the design of the optical tracking system, the optical imaging system can vary from as simple as a standard digital camera to as specialized as an astronomical telescope on the top of a mountain. The specification of the optical imaging system determines the upper limit of

4836-584: Is the largest holding of books, manuscripts, photographs, drawings and watercolours by and related to John Ruskin in the world. In 2016 the university purchased the 165-acre Forrest Hills conference centre and golf course, located on the M6 opposite the main campus, which it continues to operate as a conference venue. The university has nine colleges. Formerly, these were quasi-autonomous bodies providing for accommodation, welfare, social-life and student discipline, but are currently centrally controlled. All members of

4960-585: Is the main provider of classical music in north Lancashire and Cumbria. Concerts are held within the Great Hall. Between October and March each year the series offers a varied diet of music which includes: orchestral concerts, chamber music, events for young people, jazz, family concerts and world music. The Nuffield Theatre , a black box theatre , is one of the largest and most adaptable professional studio theatres in Europe. It presents public performances in

5084-457: Is traditionally implemented using special markers attached to an actor; however, more recent systems are able to generate accurate data by tracking surface features identified dynamically for each particular subject. Tracking a large number of performers or expanding the capture area is accomplished by the addition of more cameras. These systems produce data with three degrees of freedom for each marker, and rotational information must be inferred from

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5208-466: Is used to calibrate the cameras and obtain their positions, and the lens distortion of each camera is measured. If two calibrated cameras see a marker, a three-dimensional fix can be obtained. Typically a system will consist of around 2 to 48 cameras. Systems of over three hundred cameras exist to try to reduce marker swap. Extra cameras are required for full coverage around the capture subject and multiple subjects. Vendors have constraint software to reduce

5332-467: Is used to keep track of various objects, including airplanes, launch vehicles, missiles and satellites. Many such optical motion tracking applications occur outdoors, requiring differing lens and camera configurations. High-resolution images of the target being tracked can thereby provide more information than just motion data. The image obtained from NASA's long-range tracking system on the space shuttle Challenger's fatal launch provided crucial evidence about

5456-845: The BAFTA -nominated Longford , co-starring Samantha Morton as Myra Hindley and Jim Broadbent as Lord Longford . That same year, Serkis appeared in the role of Mr. Grin in the film rendition of Anthony Horowitz 's Alex Rider novel Stormbreaker . He also acted in the film The Prestige as Mr. Alley (assistant to Nikola Tesla ), as the voice of one of the henchrats in the Aardman Animations film Flushed Away named Spike, and appeared in Jim Threapleton 's improvised feature film Extraordinary Rendition , which premiered in 2007. In 2007, he appeared in Sugarhouse ,

5580-667: The Burke and Hare murders in Scotland in 1828. He also featured in the TV series The Accused , in "Liam's Story", written by Danny Brocklehurst and Jimmy McGovern. He played Caesar in the 20th Century Fox science-fiction film Rise of the Planet of the Apes . Serkis was acclaimed for his performance as Caesar in 2011, and in a high-profile campaign by 20th Century Fox for him to be honoured with

5704-638: The COVID-19 pandemic , and promotes donations to non-profit charities. During the COVID-19 lockdown, on VE Day , Serkis read the entire book of The Hobbit to raise money for NHS Charities Together and Best Beginnings, a pregnancy charity of which he has been an ambassador. More than 650,000 people tuned in worldwide, and Serkis raised more than £283,000 ($ 351,000). On 2 July 2020, HarperCollins UK announced that Serkis would professionally narrate The Hobbit again to be published for Audible . The audiobook

5828-638: The Lancaster International Concert Series . In 2009, these three organisations were combined as one department by the university – initially termed 'The Public Arts' but later renamed 'Live at LICA' – with Matt Fenton overseeing this unification. In August 2015 Live at LICA was rebranded to ' Lancaster Arts at Lancaster University ' to avoid confusion with the department of LICA, then director Jamie Eastman stated that; "This new name and logo communicates who we are, where we are and what we're offering." The Peter Scott Gallery

5952-615: The second unit director for The Hobbit films and made his directorial debut with Breathe (2017). He also directed and starred in the film, Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle . In August 2019, Serkis closed a deal to direct the superhero film Venom: Let There Be Carnage , the sequel to Venom (2018). It was released in theatres on 1 October 2021 in the United States and 15 October in the United Kingdom. In April 2022, he

6076-448: The two-time Olympic figure skating champion Yuzuru Hanyu graduated from Waseda University . In his thesis, using data provided by 31 sensors placed on his body, he analysed his jumps. He evaluated the use of technology both in order to improve the scoring system and to help skaters improve their jumping technique. In March 2021 a summary of the thesis was published in the academic journal. Motion tracking or motion capture started as

6200-591: The 2020 Netflix series The Letter for the King respectively. Serkis also starred alongside Ruby, and they played father and daughter. Louis also voiced Bhoot in Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle , which was directed by and co-starred his father as Baloo . Motion capture In motion capture sessions, movements of one or more actors are sampled many times per second. Whereas early techniques used images from multiple cameras to calculate 3D positions , often

6324-837: The Apes reboot series (2011–2017), Captain Haddock / Sir Francis Haddock in Steven Spielberg 's The Adventures of Tintin (2011), Baloo in his self-directed film Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle (2018) and Supreme Leader Snoke in the Star Wars sequel trilogy films The Force Awakens (2015) and The Last Jedi (2017), also portraying Kino Loy in the Star Wars Disney+ series Andor (2022). Serkis's film work in motion capture has been critically acclaimed. He has received an Empire Award and two Saturn Awards for his motion-capture acting . He earned

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6448-575: The Caribbean , the Na'vi from the film Avatar , and Clu from Tron: Legacy . The Great Goblin, the three Stone-trolls , many of the orcs and goblins in the 2012 film The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey , and Smaug were created using motion capture. The film Batman Forever (1995) used some motion capture for certain visual effects. Warner Bros. had acquired motion capture technology from arcade video game company Acclaim Entertainment for use in

6572-633: The Dragon , and Rare 's Dinosaur Planet . Indoor positioning is another application for optical motion capture systems. Robotics researchers often use motion capture systems when developing and evaluating control, estimation, and perception algorithms and hardware. In outdoor spaces, it’s possible to achieve accuracy to the centimeter by using the Global Navigation Satellite System ( GNSS ) together with Real-Time Kinematics ( RTK ). However, this reduces significantly when there

6696-519: The Jungle . He made his directorial debut with Imaginarium's 2017 film Breathe and also directed Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021). Serkis was born on 20 April 1964 in Ruislip Manor in Middlesex (now Greater London ). He grew up in both Ruislip and Baghdad , Iraq . His mother, Lylie Weech, was half Iraqi and half English, and taught disabled children; his father, Clement Serkis,

6820-534: The Old Iron Woman , a satire about the Falklands War, as a one-man show, which he performed to acclaim. In his third year at university, Serkis joined the backstage team at the local Duke's Playhouse to earn his Equity card. On graduating, although advised to take a one-year post-graduate acting course, he joined Dukes as an actor. Under director Jonathan Petherbridge, who used workshops based on

6944-488: The Planet of the Apes , and again in 2017 for War for the Planet of the Apes , the last of the trilogy. In Gareth Edwards ' 2014 science-fiction monster film Godzilla , Serkis was the consultant on the film's motion capture sequences in order to "control the souls" of the creatures. Serkis played Ulysses Klaue in Marvel Studios ' Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), and was also a motion capture consultant on

7068-419: The Rings castmates Sean Astin , Sean Bean , Orlando Bloom , Billy Boyd , Ian McKellen , Dominic Monaghan , Viggo Mortensen , Miranda Otto , John Rhys-Davies , Liv Tyler , Karl Urban and Elijah Wood , plus writer Philippa Boyens and director Peter Jackson , on 1 May 2020 joined Josh Gad 's YouTube series Reunited Apart, which reunites the cast of popular movies through video-conferencing due to

7192-571: The Rings film trilogy (2001–2003), for which he provided motion-capture movements and voice for the CGI character. His work on The Lord of the Rings started a debate on the legitimacy of CGI-assisted acting. Some critics felt Serkis should have been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor , since his voice, body language and facial expressions were used. Serkis has performed motion-capture work in several other films, including

7316-630: The Senate consists mainly of the Faculty deans, heads of academic departments, and college principals. Formerly, a body called the University Court provided a public forum where persons from within and outside Lancaster University could raise any matters regarding the university. A majority of the members of the Court represented the local community and other designated bodies with an interest in

7440-567: The VFX allowing the actor to walk around props that would make motion capture difficult for other non-active optical systems. ILM used active markers in Van Helsing to allow capture of Dracula's flying brides on very large sets similar to Weta's use of active markers in Rise of the Planet of the Apes . The power to each marker can be provided sequentially in phase with the capture system providing

7564-487: The Veil of Mists (2000) was the first feature-length film made primarily with motion capture, although many character animators also worked on the film, which had a very limited release. 2001's Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within was the first widely released movie to be made with motion capture technology. Despite its poor box-office intake, supporters of motion capture technology took notice. Total Recall had already used

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7688-630: The actor's performance in real-time, and watch the results on the motion capture-driven CG character. The unique marker IDs reduce the turnaround, by eliminating marker swapping and providing much cleaner data than other technologies. LEDs with onboard processing and radio synchronization allow motion capture outdoors in direct sunlight while capturing at 120 to 960 frames per second due to a high-speed electronic shutter. Computer processing of modulated IDs allows less hand cleanup or filtered results for lower operational costs. This higher accuracy and resolution requires more processing than passive technologies, but

7812-499: The additional processing is done at the camera to improve resolution via subpixel or centroid processing, providing both high resolution and high speed. These motion capture systems typically cost $ 20,000 for an eight-camera, 12-megapixel spatial resolution 120-hertz system with one actor. One can reverse the traditional approach based on high-speed cameras. Systems such as Prakash use inexpensive multi-LED high-speed projectors. The specially built multi-LED IR projectors optically encode

7936-603: The body movement onto a 2D or 3D character's motion on-screen. During Game Developers Conference 2016 in San Francisco Epic Games demonstrated full-body motion capture live in Unreal Engine. The whole scene, from the upcoming game Hellblade about a woman warrior named Senua, was rendered in real-time. The keynote was a collaboration between Unreal Engine , Ninja Theory , 3Lateral , Cubic Motion , IKinema and Xsens . In 2020,

8060-429: The cause of the accident. Optical tracking systems are also used to identify known spacecraft and space debris despite the fact that it has a disadvantage compared to radar in that the objects must be reflecting or emitting sufficient light. An optical tracking system typically consists of three subsystems: the optical imaging system, the mechanical tracking platform and the tracking computer. The optical imaging system

8184-482: The colleges are run by their individual SCR ( Senior Common Room ) and JCR ( Junior Common Room ), the latter being made up of student members of the college. Prior to the founding of the ninth college, Graduate College, in 1992, the eight colleges housed both undergraduate and postgraduate students. Today all postgraduate students are members of the Graduate College, which was founded to specifically address

8308-419: The construction of InfoLab21 and Alexandra Park which now houses Lonsdale College , Cartmel College and the en-suite rooms of Pendle College . The development of InfoLab21 met objections, with the proposed building being described as a ' Dalek factory'. Cartmel College is built around Barker House Farm, a listed 17th-century farmhouse and outbuildings that form the centre of the college. The university

8432-415: The design is that there is no large central Students' Union building, instead individual college facilities are used as the centre for social and recreational activities . Vehicular and pedestrian traffic is separated: this is achieved by restricting motor vehicles to a peripheral road with a linking underpass running east–west beneath Alexandra Square. The underpass accommodates the Bailrigg bus station and

8556-540: The early 1900s and was later named Lake Carter after Charles Carter , the first Vice Chancellor of the university. The site is three miles (5 km) south of the city centre. Construction of the Bailrigg campus began in November 1965, with the first building completed a year later. The first on-campus student residences opened in 1968. Unlike some other campus universities, Bailrigg was designed to integrate social, residential and teaching areas. Another major feature of

8680-694: The early 1990s he settled in London, and took a role in April De Angelis's Hush (Royal Court) as Dogboy. Also the Royal Court Theatre 's production of Mojo, and Wilson Milam 's production of Hurlyburly (1997) at the Queen's Theatre , Shaftesbury Avenue , with Rupert Graves and David Tennant . Serkis also developed a career in television, appearing in small roles such as Greville in an episode of The Darling Buds of May (1992) and

8804-538: The effective range of the tracking system. The mechanical tracking platform holds the optical imaging system and is responsible for manipulating the optical imaging system in such a way that it always points to the target being tracked. The dynamics of the mechanical tracking platform combined with the optical imaging system determines the tracking system's ability to keep the lock on a target that changes speed rapidly. Lancaster University Lancaster University (officially The University of Lancaster )

8928-613: The father of his real life daughter Ruby 's character, in the Netflix fantasy series The Letter for the King . Also for Netflix, Serkis is scheduled to star alongside Idris Elba and Cynthia Erivo in a new TV movie of Elba's show, Luther . In 2022, Serkis returned to the Star Wars franchise in a different, non-CGI role in the Disney+ television series Andor , as Kino Loy . In 2011, Serkis founded The Imaginarium Studios with film producer Jonathan Cavendish . The Imaginarium

9052-511: The fields of theatre, contemporary dance and live art from some of the best-known and respected companies from the UK and abroad. The focus of the work is new and experimental practice, a focus it shares with many of the teaching and research interest of Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts (LICA) . The Nuffield presents up to 30 visiting professional shows a year, plus public performances by students from Theatre Studies, and

9176-650: The film adaptation of Cornelia Funke 's novel. In 2010, Serkis played 1970s new wave singer Ian Dury in Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll . Serkis reunited with Peter Jackson, as a cast member in Jackson's and Steven Spielberg 's Tintin trilogy, based on The Adventures of Tintin . Serkis supplied the voice and motion capture performance of Captain Haddock (adopting a Scottish accent ) as well as his ancestor, Sir Francis Haddock . Filming began in January 2009 and

9300-460: The film is expected to be released in 2026. Serkis made an appearance in the music video for Neneh Cherry 's "Woman", portraying an abusive boyfriend, in 1996. After portraying Gollum in The Lord of the Rings series, he published a memoir about his experiences, titled Gollum: How We Made Movie Magic , published in late 2004. In 2015, Serkis collaborated with rock band Coldplay in the making of

9424-667: The film was released in 2011. Filming was due to begin in September 2008, but was delayed due to Universal pulling out of backing the project. In 2009, Serkis voiced the role of the demon Screwtape in Focus on the Family 's Radio Theatre audio adaptation of C. S. Lewis 's The Screwtape Letters . In 2010, Serkis was cast as William Hare , with Simon Pegg as Burke, in the John Landis black comedy film Burke and Hare based on

9548-414: The film's production. Acclaim's 1995 video game of the same name also used the same motion capture technology to animate the digitized sprite graphics. Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999) was the first feature-length film to include a main character created using motion capture (that character being Jar Jar Binks , played by Ahmed Best ), and Indian - American film Sinbad: Beyond

9672-737: The film. He reprised the role in Marvel Studios' Black Panther (2018), and provided the voice in the sixth episode of Marvel 's What If...? . He played Supreme Leader Snoke in Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) and reprised the role in Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017), and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019). Serkis appeared as the Ghost of Christmas Past in the 2019 BBC / FX three-part miniseries A Christmas Carol . In 2019, it

9796-601: The first JCRs in October 1968. The university moved from the city to the new campus at Bailrigg between 1966 and 1970. In 2014, Lancaster University celebrated its 50th anniversary with a series of events throughout the year, involving alumni, staff, students and local community members. In 2024, the Students' Union Assembly voted to lobby the University to transition the catering to 50% vegan by 2025 and 100% vegan by 2027 without major student consultation.The vote

9920-530: The first chancellor . She was inaugurated in 1964. The ceremony also saw the granting of various honorary degrees to dignitaries including the Prime Minister, Harold Wilson . Princess Alexandra retired as chancellor in 2004 and was at that time the longest serving chancellor of any British university. On her departure, she gave approval for the Chancellor's Medal to be awarded for academic merit to

10044-503: The first phase opening in September 1966, the second in July 1968 and the third in January 1971. The library was extended in 1997 and underwent a phased refurbishment in 2014, which was completed in 2016. In 2021 the Library Extension Project was completed, which introduced additional student study space and ' living walls ', exhibition and research space, a 'safepod' and digital studio . A distinctive feature of

10168-605: The four faculties are collectively known as Professional Services, and include Facilities, Admissions, and the Library. The university is governed by two main statutory bodies: the Council and the Senate. The council, chaired by the Pro-Chancellor , is the governing body, consisting of mainly lay members along with representatives of staff and students. It is responsible for the proper management and financial solvency of

10292-469: The frequency rate of the desired motion. The resolution of the system is important in both the spatial resolution and temporal resolution as motion blur causes almost the same problems as low resolution. Since the beginning of the 21st century - and because of the rapid growth of technology - new methods have been developed. Most modern systems can extract the silhouette of the performer from the background. Afterwards all joint angles are calculated by fitting in

10416-475: The highest-performing undergraduates and postgraduates. Each year presentations are made to up to five graduates of taught masters' courses and up to six to the highest-performing undergraduates. The university accepted its first students in October 1964 and there were initially 13 professors, 32 additional members of teaching and research staff, 8 library staff and 14 administrators on academic grades. The motto, " patet omnibus veritas ", ("Truth lies open to all"),

10540-423: The library is the large tree that grows in the centre of the ground floor study area. Next to the library, and opened in 1998 is The Ruskin - Library, Museum and Research Centre , designed by Sir Richard MacCormac The university began expansion onto the lower slopes of Bailrigg with the development of new buildings for Graduate College in 1998, which is now part of South-West Campus. Development continued with

10664-527: The methods of Augusto Boal , he spent 18 months acting in a broad range of productions from Brecht , Shakespeare and modern British playwrights. After 16 months, and having gained his Equity card, Serkis joined a series of touring companies, including productions of: Bouncers opposite Hull Truck ; Florizel in The Winter's Tale ; and the fool in King Lear with director Max Stafford-Clark . In

10788-468: The music video for " Adventure of a Lifetime ". The group performed as chimpanzees with Serkis acting as a motion-capture consultant. In December 2018, he appeared in a video for People's Vote as UK Prime Minister Theresa May using the voice of Gollum, spoofing May's Brexit deal . He also appears in the BBC Earth programme, Neanderthals: Meet Your Ancestors . Serkis, together with fellow Lord of

10912-482: The needs of postgraduates and provide year-round provision for courses with different term dates. Students on integrated master's degrees however are still considered undergraduates and therefore remain in their original colleges. Seven of the eight undergraduate colleges are named after regions of the traditional county of Lancashire , whilst County College is named after Lancashire County Council which financed its construction. The college buildings accommodate

11036-466: The outside, on both sides. When you came into the spaces things were square, they were rectangular courtyards and they were all slightly different. There were two or three essentials: one was that the covered way had to be continuous, the buildings had to be three or four storeys high and connecting to the next one. I thought it worked very well." Between 2016 and 2018 the Spine was extensively remodelled in

11160-417: The problem of marker swapping since all passive markers appear identical. Unlike active marker systems and magnetic systems, passive systems do not require the user to wear wires or electronic equipment. Instead, hundreds of rubber balls are attached with reflective tape, which needs to be replaced periodically. The markers are usually attached directly to the skin (as in biomechanics), or they are velcroed to

11284-418: The purpose of motion capture is to record only the movements of the actor, not their visual appearance. This animation data is mapped to a 3D model so that the model performs the same actions as the actor. This process may be contrasted with the older technique of rotoscoping . Camera movements can also be motion captured so that a virtual camera in the scene will pan, tilt or dolly around the stage driven by

11408-607: The rapid development of the markerless approach to motion capture. Markerless systems such as those developed at Stanford University , the University of Maryland , MIT , and the Max Planck Institute , do not require subjects to wear special equipment for tracking. Special computer algorithms are designed to allow the system to analyze multiple streams of optical input and identify human forms, breaking them down into constituent parts for tracking. ESC entertainment ,

11532-433: The relative orientation of three or more markers; for instance shoulder, elbow and wrist markers providing the angle of the elbow. Newer hybrid systems are combining inertial sensors with optical sensors to reduce occlusion, increase the number of users and improve the ability to track without having to manually clean up data. Passive optical systems use markers coated with a retroreflective material to reflect light that

11656-715: The role of Gollum in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey the first film in the three-part The Hobbit films. It was released in 2012, and the follow-ups were released in 2013 and 2014. He was also the trilogy's second unit director, which included directing aerial shots and battle scenes. He was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in June 2012 along with 175 other individuals. In 2014, Serkis reprised his role as Caesar in Dawn of

11780-475: The scenes involving motion capture were directed in real-time using Autodesk MotionBuilder software to render a screen image which allowed the director and the actor to see what they would look like in the movie, making it easier to direct the movie as it would be seen by the viewer. This method allowed views and angles not possible from a pre-rendered animation. Cameron was so proud of his results that he invited Steven Spielberg and George Lucas on set to view

11904-577: The series The Letter for the King (2020). Serkis portrayed Ulysses Klaue in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) films Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) and Black Panther (2018), as well as the Disney+ series What If…? (2021). He also played Alfred Pennyworth in The Batman (2022). Serkis has his own production company and motion capture workshop, The Imaginarium in London, which he used for Mowgli: Legend of

12028-475: The set. Retroactively obtaining camera movement data from the captured footage is known as match moving or camera tracking . The first virtual actor animated by motion-capture was produced in 1993 by Didier Pourcel and his team at Gribouille. It involved "cloning" the body and face of French comedian Richard Bohringer, and then animating it with still-nascent motion-capture tools. Motion capture offers several advantages over traditional computer animation of

12152-526: The south of the city. The campus buildings are arranged around a central walkway known as the Spine, which is connected to a central plaza, named Alexandra Square in honour of its first chancellor , Princess Alexandra . Lancaster is a residential collegiate university ; the colleges are weakly autonomous. The eight undergraduate colleges are named after places in the historic county of Lancashire, and each has its own campus residence blocks, common rooms, administrative staff and bars. Lancaster has ranked in

12276-457: The south-east of the square is the tallest building on campus: the fourteen-storey Bowland Tower, which contains accommodation and disguises the boiler room chimney. One of the most distinctive of the Bailrigg buildings is the free-standing University Chaplaincy Centre . Opened on 2 May 1969, the architects were the Preston -based firm Cassidy & Ashton. The building has a trefoil plan with

12400-520: The space. Instead of retro-reflective or active light emitting diode (LED) markers, the system uses photosensitive marker tags to decode the optical signals. By attaching tags with photo sensors to scene points, the tags can compute not only their own locations of each point, but also their own orientation, incident illumination, and reflectance. These tracking tags work in natural lighting conditions and can be imperceptibly embedded in attire or other objects. The system supports an unlimited number of tags in

12524-499: The system in action. In Marvel's The Avengers , Mark Ruffalo used motion capture so he could play his character the Hulk , rather than have him be only CGI as in previous films, making Ruffalo the first actor to play both the human and the Hulk versions of Bruce Banner. FaceRig software uses facial recognition technology from ULSee.Inc to map a player's facial expressions and the body tracking technology from Perception Neuron to map

12648-481: The technique, in the scene of the x-ray scanner and the skeletons. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers was the first feature film to utilize a real-time motion capture system. This method streamed the actions of actor Andy Serkis into the computer-generated imagery skin of Gollum / Smeagol as it was being performed. Storymind Entertainment, which is an independent Ukrainian studio, created

12772-495: The title character in the 2005 version of King Kong (in which he also played the ship's cook in live-action) and as Caesar in Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014), and War for the Planet of the Apes (2017). He also worked with game developers Ninja Theory on the 2007 release Heavenly Sword , providing the motion capture and voice for King Bohan (the game's main villain). In 2006, Serkis starred as serial killer Ian Brady in

12896-563: The top fifteen in all three UK national league tables for the past 10 years, and received a Gold rating in the Government's 2017 and 2023 Teaching Excellence Framework . The annual income of the institution for 2022/23 was £381.0 million of which £46.4 million was from research grants and contracts, with an expenditure of £345.0 million. Lancaster is a member of the N8 Group of research universities, which also includes

13020-421: The true position of targets — the “ground truth” baseline in research and development. Results derived from other sensors and algorithms can then be compared to the ground truth data to evaluate their performance. Movies use motion capture for CGI effects, in some cases replacing traditional cel animation, and for completely CGI creatures, such as Gollum , The Mummy , King Kong , Davy Jones from Pirates of

13144-489: The universities of Durham , Leeds , Liverpool , Manchester , Newcastle , Sheffield and York . Since 2015, Alan Milburn has been the university's chancellor. Between 1958 and 1961 seven new plate glass universities were announced, including Lancaster. The choice of Lancaster as the site of the fourth new university was announced on 23 November 1961. The university was established by royal charter in 1964. The charter stipulated that Princess Alexandra of Kent be

13268-407: The university are members of a college, although in recent years academic staff have had decreasing involvement. Most colleges have about eight or nine hundred members and all on-campus accommodation is linked to a college, with blocks or individual flats being linked to one college or another each year according to demand. The colleges were governed by a syndicate, including a principal (originally

13392-622: The university's student theatre and dance societies and a range of local community organisations. The Ruskin - Library, Museum and Research Centre houses archive material related to the poet, author and artist John Ruskin . It is open to the public, although only a small part of the collection is on public display at once. The building was constructed in 1997 by architect Sir Richard MacCormac CBE PPRIBA RA FRSA (1938–2014). The Ruskin Whitehouse Collection housed in The Ruskin

13516-496: The university, with major policy decisions and corporate strategy being subject to its approval. The majority of Council members are "lay members"; neither staff nor students of the university. The Senate of the university, chaired by the Vice-Chancellor, is the principal academic authority. It oversees academic management and sets strategy and priorities, including the curriculum and maintenance of standards. Membership of

13640-558: The voices). The 2007 adaptation of the saga Beowulf animated digital characters whose appearances were based in part on the actors who provided their motions and voices. James Cameron's highly popular Avatar used this technique to create the Na'vi that inhabit Pandora. The Walt Disney Company has produced Robert Zemeckis 's A Christmas Carol using this technique. In 2007, Disney acquired Zemeckis' ImageMovers Digital (that produces motion capture films), but then closed it in 2011, after

13764-449: The work of the university. The final meeting of the Court took place in January 2018, with the university currently planning to replace it with an "Annual Public Meeting". The Visitor of the university was Queen Elizabeth II . The visitor is the final arbiter of any dispute within the university, except in those areas where legislation has removed this to the law courts or other ombudsmen . Student complaints and appeals were heard by

13888-514: The world have built indoor motion capture volumes for this purpose. Purdue University houses the world’s largest indoor motion capture system, inside the Purdue UAS Research and Test (PURT) facility. PURT is dedicated to UAS research, and provides tracking volume of 600,000 cubic feet using 60 motion capture cameras. The optical motion capture system is able to track targets in its volume with millimeter accuracy, effectively providing

14012-908: Was a member of The County College and part of the student radio station Bailrigg FM . He joined the Nuffield Studio, getting involved in designing and producing plays. Having agreed to act in a couple of productions towards the end of his first year, Serkis played the lead role in Barrie Keeffe 's play Gotcha as a rebellious teenager holding a teacher hostage. As a result, he changed his major subject to acting, constructing his Independent Studies Degree around acting and set design, studying Konstantin Stanislavski and Bertolt Brecht , and including minor modules in art and visual graphics. In his final year at Lancaster he adapted Raymond Briggs 's graphic novel The Tin-Pot Foreign General and

14136-582: Was about Monkey World , the popular ape and monkey sanctuary and zoo near Wool, Dorset . In the joint BBC/ HBO production Einstein and Eddington , (2008) Serkis played Albert Einstein , following the development of his theory of relativity , while David Tennant played scientist Sir Arthur Eddington . In 2008, Serkis appeared as Rigaud in the BBC Television adaptation of Charles Dickens ' Little Dorrit and as Capricorn in Inkheart ,

14260-494: Was adopted. The first science students were admitted in 1965. The university was temporarily based in the city. A lecture theatre and the university's first Junior Common Room were in Centenary Church, a former Congregational church beside the old factory premises of Waring & Gillow , which were used to accommodate the new students. Many new students were housed in the nearby town of Morecambe . The Grand Theatre

14384-668: Was an Iraqi-Armenian gynaecologist . His parents are Catholic . His ancestors' original surname was " Sarkisian ". His father often worked abroad in the Middle East, while Serkis and his siblings were raised in Britain, with regular holidays in the Middle Eastern cities of Tyre , Sidon , Damascus and Baghdad. Serkis was educated at St Benedict's School, Ealing . He studied visual arts and theatre as part of his degree at Lancaster University and graduated in 1985. Serkis

14508-492: Was animated without motion capture. In the ending credits of Pixar 's film Ratatouille , a stamp appears labelling the film as "100% Genuine Animation – No Motion Capture!" Since 2001, motion capture has been used extensively to simulate or approximate the look of live-action theater, with nearly photorealistic digital character models. The Polar Express used motion capture to allow Tom Hanks to perform as several distinct digital characters (in which he also provided

14632-437: Was announced that Serkis would play Alfred Pennyworth in The Batman (2022). In late 2015, it was announced that Serkis was working on a modern film adaptation of Rumpelstiltskin , titled Steelskin . In addition to starring in the film, Serkis will serve as producer and director. Serkis received a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Performer in a Daytime Fiction Program in 2021 for his role as Mayor of Mistrinaut,

14756-468: Was leased as a main lecture room and 112 and 114 in the St Leonard's Gate area became teaching and recreational rooms. The library occupied the old workshops of Shrigley and Hunt on Castle Hill. Bowland and Lonsdale colleges were founded as the university's first two colleges, and all staff and students were allocated to one of the two, although the first college buildings would not be completed until 1966. The first students moved into residence and set up

14880-436: Was refurbished in autumn 2010. Car parking is arranged in cul-de-sacs running off the peripheral road. The campus buildings are arranged around a central walkway known as "The Spine". The walkway runs from north ( County College ) to south-west ( Graduate College ) and is covered for most of its length. The main architect was Gabriel Epstein of Shepheard and Epstein. Architect Peter Shepheard recalls: "We went up there on

15004-567: Was released on 3 September 2020 in the UK, published by HarperCollins, and 21 September in the US, published by Recorded Books . The cover art, by Alan Lee , was drawn specially for the release. On 7 July 2021, HarperCollinsUK and Recorded Books announced Serkis would follow up his narration of The Hobbit with a professional recording of all three The Lord of the Rings novels that were released on 16 September. The CDs were released on 14 October 2021. Serkis and producer Andrew Levitas are creating

15128-581: Was set to direct Animal Farm , an animated adaptation of George Orwell 's novella of the same name . In May 2024, it was announced that Serkis would direct, executive produce, and star in The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum for Warner Bros. Pictures , a working title for a new installment in the Lord of the Rings film series, with Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens co-writing the screenplay and Jackson co-producing alongside Walsh and Boyens;

15252-412: Was supported by the student chapter of Plant-Based Universities . The purpose-built campus occupies Bailrigg , a 360-acre (0.563 sq mi; 1.457 km ) site donated by Lancaster City Council in 1963. The campus buildings are located on a hilltop, the lower slopes of which are landscaped parkland which includes Lake Carter duck pond and the university sports fields. The lake was created in

15376-826: Was used to animate the 2D player characters of Martech 's video game Vixen (performed by model Corinne Russell ) and Magical Company 's 2D arcade fighting game Last Apostle Puppet Show (to animate digitized sprites ). Motion capture was later notably used to animate the 3D character models in the Sega Model arcade games Virtua Fighter (1993) and Virtua Fighter 2 (1994). In mid-1995, developer/publisher Acclaim Entertainment had its own in-house motion capture studio built into its headquarters. Namco 's 1995 arcade game Soul Edge used passive optical system markers for motion capture. Motion capture also uses athletes in based-off animated games, such as Naughty Dog 's Crash Bandicoot , Insomniac Games ' Spyro

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