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Chao News Client Reporter Zhu Gaoxiang

Image source: Game screenshot

Recently, as the first 3A game in China, "Black Myth: Wukong" has become extremely popular.

"Wearing a phoenix-wing purple gold crown, a golden chain mail, lotus silk shoes, and a golden hoop in hand." Countless "destined people" enjoy the beautiful scenes, explore the exciting plot, and fight monsters and level up in smooth movements in the game. Behind the perfect experience, a large number of realistic movements and expressions actually come from the hard work of motion capture actors.

Chao News reporter interviewed the "real body" of "Destiny Man" - motion capture actor Yin Kai, and talked about the motion capture industry stories behind the scenes of the game.

Playing both Wukong and a monster, he once worked 12 hours a day

After Black Myth: Wukong became popular, Yin Kai, as a "destined" motion capture actor, has been noticeably busier. Work and interviews are intertwined, and he often has time to relax until very late.

"I am very happy that the game is liked by many people, and the motion capture industry is gradually being recognized and familiar to the public." Yin Kai told Chao News reporter that he had practiced martial arts since he was a child and later studied acting at Shanghai University of Sport, but it was purely by chance that he became a motion capture actor.

In 2015, a game company came to the school to select motion capture actors, and Yin Kai was chosen. Since then, he has embarked on the road of motion capture actors, and gradually his side job has become his main job, and it has been 9 years now.

As for the role in Black Myth: Wukong, Yin Kai told the reporter: "The character that everyone controls when entering the game is me. There is a 60 to 70 percent chance that the monsters you encounter on the road are also played by me."

(Video source: provided by the interviewee)

Among the action designs of these characters, the stick moves of "Tianmingren" left the deepest impression on Yin Kai. "When designing the moves of 'Tianmingren', I added a lot of martial arts elements, which should be consistent with the behavior of monkeys holding sticks and the movements should be smooth and handsome. The designs of poking and twisting the stick are still impressive to me now," Yin Kai told reporters.

In the comparison video that Yin Kai sent to reporters, we can see that Yin Kai is wearing a special motion capture costume, and every move of Wukong is exactly the same as Yin Kai's performance, even the facial expressions or small movements of shaking heads are extremely similar.

Yin Kai told the reporter that when he first started doing motion capture for Black Myth: Wukong, he traveled all over the country, but later Game Science built its own motion capture studio, and he often filmed in Hangzhou. According to him, due to the large number of characters, in order to meet the deadline, his shooting time was very long every day, up to 12 hours, with only a drink of water and a meal in between.

Yin Kai often said that for those who want to enter the motion capture industry, they must be prepared to endure hardships.

Motion capture actors give characters souls behind the scenes

From entering the industry in 2015 to now, Yin Kai has witnessed the development cycle of China's motion capture industry and motion capture actors.

"In the beginning, few people knew what motion capture was, and there was not even a definition of 'motion capture actor' in China. Motion capture actor is a profession that has only become well-known to the public in recent years." Yin Kai said, however, as some film and television, animation, and games have used motion capture in recent years, this profession has gradually gained some recognition and popularity in the industry.

Image source: Provided by the interviewee

Yin Kai told reporters that for motion capture actors, the role requirements are very high, and the character shaping is also extremely detailed. Often after completing a character's action, they record and match it to the game to see the effect. If one is not suitable, they will overturn and customize the capture action plan again until they are satisfied.

According to Virtual Motion Point, a company that provides professional spatial computing and positioning capture technology service support for Game Science, the game uses motion capture to record the expressions, body postures and movement details of real people in a 1:1 ratio. It captures the actors' movements in real time, quickly reconstructs 2D images into 3D, and accurately identifies marker points and calculates and outputs the marker point centroid data. The feedback system drives the animated image in real time through algorithm calculations, ensuring real-time interaction of the virtual image in the game.

Yin Kai told reporters that in addition to good communication between actors and animators, a good motion capture actor must have a sense of belief in non-physical performance and have strong practical ability and innovation awareness. At present, the technology of motion capture has been developing rapidly and gradually becoming mature, but China still has a long way to go in breaking through independent technology.

"Although motion capture actors are also actors, there is still a big difference between them and film and television actors. For those who want to enter this industry, they must be prepared to not show their faces and to endure hardships," said Yin Kai.

First of all, motion capture actors are behind-the-scenes professionals who give characters souls in the invisible backstage. In addition, the work intensity of motion capture actors is relatively high, and they may often have to work for 8 hours in a row, which is a test of the actors' confidence and physical fitness. "In addition to these, you must also be a skilled actor, at least you must be able to act, to work in this industry." Yin Kai said.

Today, Yin Kai has established his own motion capture company, and he can be seen in games such as "Genshin Impact" and "Peace Elite". He feels that seeing his performances loved by everyone makes him feel that everything is worth it. "As more and more people understand and like the motion capture industry, motion capture actors will have a better and better development stage in the future."

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