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EltonJohnisPlumpandDreamy
Inspiring
September 12, 2017
Answered

what kind of animation technique allows for this type of effect? (see video below, please)

  • September 12, 2017
  • 3 replies
  • 682 views

Hi,

I've been looking at various projection-mapping videos, and I notice some very interesting kinds of animation that I'm sure were done in Aftereffects, but have no idea what techniques were used.  If you would please look at the video below, starting at 1:43 all the surfaces of this object start lighting up at different times.  How do you think they managed to synchronize this? I really want to try and get into some of this stuff myself, but don't know how to achieve it without manually adding each surface as a separate layer and staggering them so they are visible at different times; but that's not efficient at all.. I would really appreciate any insight people may have  (I'd ask the OP, but they seem unresponsive to comments)   Also, do you think the light-up effect is just white solid with a glow on it?
3D video projection mapping on cubes - YouTube
    This topic has been closed for replies.
    Correct answer Mylenium

    How do you think they managed to synchronize this?

    There's nothing magic about it. It's just a ton of compositions to deal with. Usually you create a reasonably large reference comp that you slice up, distort and arrange the pieces to match the perspectives of your projectors (or the result of your photogrammetry calibration) and then take it from there by building the actual output comps on top of this reference pass. It's really just a lot of jumping back and forth and mutually updating the different compositions after you have changed something in one of them. The specifics will always depend on the actual projection, anyway. This is simply fiddly stuff that takes time to figure out by trial & error. Most of the time there are even last minute changes directly on location dur to something having changed.

    Mylenium

    3 replies

    E
    EltonJohnisPlumpandDreamyAuthor
    Inspiring
    September 14, 2017

    Thank you both. I guess I imagined there was a better way than having a ton of compositions, but what you say makes sense.  I have done a few basic things with mad mapper, but nothing as good as this

    Mylenium
    MyleniumCorrect answer
    Legend
    September 12, 2017

    How do you think they managed to synchronize this?

    There's nothing magic about it. It's just a ton of compositions to deal with. Usually you create a reasonably large reference comp that you slice up, distort and arrange the pieces to match the perspectives of your projectors (or the result of your photogrammetry calibration) and then take it from there by building the actual output comps on top of this reference pass. It's really just a lot of jumping back and forth and mutually updating the different compositions after you have changed something in one of them. The specifics will always depend on the actual projection, anyway. This is simply fiddly stuff that takes time to figure out by trial & error. Most of the time there are even last minute changes directly on location dur to something having changed.

    Mylenium

    Andrew Yoole
    Andrew Yoole
    Inspiring
    September 12, 2017

    There's nothing here that specifically says After Effects to me, but its possible.  3D Projection Mapping is an art unto itself, and something like your example is almost certainly generated by 3D mapping software like MadMapper or any of a myriad of other specific software tools.  Starting Point:

    http://projection-mapping.org/which-projection-mapping-software/

    On jobs like these, individual elements/surfaces may be created in a tool like After Effects, then applied using 3D mapping software. 

    Simpler 3D mapping may indeed be created entirely in AE, where the 3D surface is a little less extreme or specific, but I doubt your example is such a case.

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