Markerless Facial Motion Capture

With the ever-rising capabilities of motion capture systems; this project explored markerless facial motion capture programs using the Kinect Sensor for Xbox. Many systems today still use markers and end up retargeting after a motion capture recording. This project used a simpler process of setting up and being able to display the effects live. An off-the-shelf system was built using a computer, a Kinect Sensor, a plug-in from Brekel, and Autodesk software. The first goal was to create a process that was able to capture and project live facial motion for fewer than $500 USD. Anything over $500 USD was considered to be more of a professional studio setup. With an inexpensive setup, amateur users can do motion capture outside of a studio. The second goal was to observe the outcome of the audiences' responses and see if interaction felt more mechanical than human. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS There are so many people to thank, people that played a vital part to my project. First of all, the creators/companies of the various programs and hardware used for this project: Microsoft, Autodesk, and Jasper Brekelmans. Without one of those, I believe my goal would not succeed as it did. Jasper especially helped by guiding me on his creation, the Brekel plug-in. Athough far away in Amsterdam, his forum posts were timely responses to my questions. My chair, Professor Perkins-Buzo, was equally informative about my study. He was always there to help troubleshoot any problems that occurred and help guide my creative ideas into one particular path. I'd like to thank have such friends to support me and see my system in action. I am especially grateful to my significant other, Jordan Devenport. He saw me spend many late nights working on solving various problems and his encouragement helped keep me going. Finally, I am thankful for my parents. Although they don't quite understand my study, their support has added an extra cushion of comfort to my schooling.