Live Motion Capture

At Atelier Daruma, I worked on a live motion-capture demonstration for Mira, a virtual platform connecting physical and virtual experiences. Dancers performed in the studio while their avatars moved in Unreal Engine. Guests could watch on a screen or join the virtual space through a VR headset. The live demonstration featured dancers from Blanca Li’s company, with Blanca Li and representatives from Chanel attending in person.

With the dancers arriving the next day, we assembled and calibrated a capture volume of around fifteen OptiTrack cameras in one day. I configured Motive and the connection to Unreal, working with the software vendor’s US team to get the live data flowing. I also wore the suit myself to test the complete workflow before the performance.

Breakdance pushed the avatar retargeting beyond upright movement: fast transitions and contact through the hands, head and back required a custom control rig and procedural corrections to reduce intersections and sliding.

Our scope covered motion capture through to the engine. Another provider handled the environment, multi-user system and headset experience; coordinating the data handoff was essential to bringing both parts together. The demonstration ran live the following day, with the dancers improvising and guests moving between the screen and VR.