Mocap… The Money Part
If you want to make a movie, it can be expensive. Very expensive. Even after renting cameras, hiring an entire crew to boom, operate the camera, direct, assistant direct, etc. There are certain rules that must be followed. Licensing, especially in L.A., can cost up to hundreds of dollars per day of outdoor filming. No wonder this industry is so stressful. Even with multiple backers and sponsors, it’s easy to blow through your money if you don’t budget correctly.
Mocap is no exception. Along with acquiring the bodysuits, infrared dots, and cameras, an entire team of animators is needed to create the character you will be plastering on the actor’s movements. Because of the technological limitations of needing a specific set of gadgets, using mocap in your film is going to take quite a big chunk out of the budget, especially if the character in question is one of the main roles.
Let’s start with a basic setup for motion capture filming. First, you may need a space depending on the context of the film. Usually, spaces like this range from $2500 per day plus $20 retargeting per second. This is the rate for Motion Capture NYC, so prices may differ depending on which studio you decide on using.
If the studio you choose to go with doesn’t provide the suits to outfit your actors, you may have to purchase your own. Although this is unlikely, you never know. An OptiTrack motion capture suit can be bought for around $300 online. Unfortunately, this only includes the suit. No trackers are provided for attachment. You are basically buying a skinsuit with a beanie.
When it comes to the cameras and software itself, the bigger prices start to kick in. On the Activision Motion capture studio, the latest Vicon Blade software is used with about 132 specially designed cameras. For some context, two Vicon cameras with a singular software license can get up to about $12,500. That isn’t even including the pricing for mapping the actors and characters on set, which tends to run around $4,000 per person.
If you wish to film outside, there are still options for you. There have been major updates to the suit through different private companies. Rokoko, for example, released their Smartsuit Pro, which is worn much like regular clothing. It connects wirelessly to your computer and system, and can be up and running in a matter of minutes. However, this tech does not come cheap. Prices start from $2495, as shown below.
In conclusion, this is an expensive process. It’s not surprising why the only movies that use motion capture technology are made by huge production companies and are usually a guaranteed success. No one wants to spend this kind of money for the possibility of not making any of it back. This kind of filming has to be reserved for the elite for the present time, but I have no doubt that more affordable options will become available in the foreseeable future. It may not be as high quality, but smaller production companies and not-so-well-known directors may be able to experiment with this niche in the film industry.
