EPI IMAGINEIntuitive Modeling and Animation

for Interactive Graphics & Narrative Environment

Visite direction 2013

A Computer Graphics group 3D Modeling, Animation, Cinematography

A pluridiscilinary teamMarie-Paule Cani (Prof computer science Ensimag/ INPG)François Faure (Prof computer science UJF)Stefanie Hahmann (Prof applied-math, Ensimag / INPG)Jean-Claude Léon (Prof mechanics, Ense3/ INPG)Olivier Palombi (Prof in anatomy ,UJF)Damien Rohmer (MdC CPE Lyon)Rémi Ronfard (CR1 INRIA)

14 PhD students

5 research engineers + 1 computer artist

Administrative assistants : Catherine Bessière (INRIA), Florence Polge (ERC)

Intuitive Modeling and Animation for Interactive Graphics & Narrative Environments

Major Issue : demand for more and more complex scenesArmies of Computer Artists during several years?Or automatic creation … with little control ??

Scientific focus: Creation tools for animated virtual worldsApplications to films & games, engineering, other sciences, general public

Creation of Virtual Worlds

Practice in the film industry

Best research results quickly available but…Artists do as much as they can WITHOUT computers

Shape, motion, stories are drafted on paper, clay, etc.

Digital stagesDesign stages

[Pixar, « Geri’s game »]

Creation of Virtual Worlds

Practice in the industry

Standard software

• Direct editing of DoF(NURBS, subdivision)

• Years of training

Spoils creativity!

Grand challenge?

“Make tools as transparent to the artists as special effects were made transparent to the public!”

[Rob Cook, Technical director Pixar, 2009]

Making tools transparent ?

Methodology

User-centered perspective on shapes & motionHigh-level models embedding a priori knowledgeGenerate details from minimal user inputAdvanced transfer and editing tools

Creating interactive virtual prototypesDesigning & experimenting in the same systemNatural interaction gestures Real-time response

Long term Vision

“Magic pen” to seamlessly create shapes, motions & stories

Shape

Story

Motion

Applications

Interactive virtual prototyping, various domains

Civil & mechanical engineering

Natural sciencesVirtual anatomy: ontology, 3D modeling & animationPlants: high level representations for plants geometry

Art, communication & education Interactive tools for educationDesign tools for artist and the publicTheater: virtual staging & rehearsals

Films & games Real-time, plausible clothing Virtual cinematography & film editing

Four scientific axes

1. High-level models for shapes In charge: Stefanie Hahmann

2. Models for real-time motion synthesis In charge: François Faure

3. Knowledge-based models for narrative design In charge: Rémi Ronfard

4. Creating and interacting with virtual prototypesIn charge: Jean-Claude Léon

New Results 2012

First image of a flat torus [@Rohmer]

The Visual Computer:

• FFD for GPU [Hahmann, Bonneau, Barbier, Elber, Hagen 2012]• Procedural Generation of Villages on Arbitrary Terrains

[Emilien, Bernhardt, Peytavie, Cani, Galin 2012]

Shapes 2012-2013Design Preserving Garment Transfer

[Brouet Sheffer Boissieux CaniSIGGRAPH 2012]

Shapes 2012-2013 (ANR Romma)Computing interfaces in assemblies

[Jourdes, Bonneau, Hahamnn, Faure, Léon, SPM/CAD 2013]

11

Shapes 2012-2013Analyse: morphologie et graphe de construction

Analyse morphologique pour l’idéalisation d’objets [F. Boussuge, J-C Léon, S. Hahmann, L. Fine, Idealized models for FEA derived fromgenerative modeling processes based on extrusion primitives, soumission Meshing RoundTable]

Shapes 2012-2013Analyse: morphologie et graphe de construction

Construction non triviale d’objets à partir de primitives d’extrusion. (F. Boussuge, J-C Léon, S. Hahmann, L. Fine, Extraction of generative processes from B-Rep shapes and application to idealization transformations, acceptation conditionnelle SPM 13)

Animation 2012-2013Adaptive Image-based Intersection Volume

Adaptive Image-based Intersection Volume [B. WANG, F. FAURE, D. K. PAI]

SIGGRAPH 2012

Animation 2012-2013Implicit skinning

Real-Time skinning with Contact Modeling[Vaillant, Barthe, Guennebaud, Cani, Rohmer,

Wyvill, Gourmel, Paulin]

SIGGRAPH 2013

Implicit skinning

Narrative design 2012-2013 Detecting and naming actors in movies

View-independent model of actor’s appearances (color) from examples• Compared to generic detectors, 20 % better in recall, same precision• Also useful for live performances [Gandhi Ronfard CVPR 2013]

Narrative design 2012-2013 The Prose Storyboard Language

A Tool for Annotating and Directing Movies.

• Pseudo-natural language description of movie shots

• for controled annotation of real movies & intuitive camera control in 3D animation.

[Intelligent Cinematography and Editing W, Ronfard, Gandhi Boiron 2013]

Creation & Interaction 2012-2013Understanding Table-top Interaction

Understanding Hand Degrees of Freedom and Natural Gestures for 3D Interaction on Tabletop

[Brouet, Blanch, Cani, Interact 2013]

Hand Navigator 2012-2013 Partnership Inria – Haption

Nouveau périphérique haptique pour la saisie réaliste d’objets

Creation & Interaction 2013Mutable elastic models for sculpting structured shapes

Clay-like scultping!

[Milliez, Wand, Cani,EUROGRAPHICS 2013]

Siggraph Asia 2013

Line of action

Expressive character posing

[Guay, Cani, Ronfard, Siggraph Asia 2013]

Siggraph Asia 2013

Anatomy Transfer

[Dicko, Faure, Gilles, Palombi, Kavan, Cani

Siggraph Asia 2013]

Soumissions TOG 2013

Sketching folds

[Jung, Hahmann, Rohmer, Begault,

Boissieux, Cani, submitted for

publication 2013]