The new World War Z movie starring Brad Pitt launched into theatres a few weeks ago, bringing with it its own special breed of multiple zombie hordes for Brad to dodge.
Now during an interview with Wired, behind-the-scenes footage has been revealed detailing how the zombie hordes were created and the artificial intelligence used to create the very realistic and massive zombie apocalypse scenes, which included thousands of zombies climbing over one another. Check out the video after the jump to see how the London-based Moving Picture Company digital special effects company created it.
The Creation of Realistic Zombie Hordes
The visual effects (VFX) team faced a monumental task in bringing the zombie apocalypse to life. For the movie’s massive piles of Zs in Jerusalem, the VFX company—one of a handful that worked on World War Z—had to build zombie “agents” that could “act” on their own. The digital creatures, whose movements come from motion-capture performances of people running up nets and falling down ramps, were programmed with a kind of artificial intelligence. Using MPC‘s proprietary crowd-simulation program Alice, each “agent” was given a set of rules and an objective to complete. Then a simulation was run to make them crawl all over each other to achieve that objective.
The AI-driven approach allowed for a more organic and chaotic movement of the zombies, making the scenes more terrifying and realistic. Each zombie agent had to react to its environment and the other zombies around it, creating a dynamic and unpredictable swarm. This level of detail and realism was crucial for the film, as it aimed to depict a global-scale zombie outbreak with unprecedented intensity.
Behind the Scenes: Motion Capture and AI
The process of creating these digital zombies began with motion capture. Actors performed various movements, such as running, climbing, and falling, which were then recorded and used as the basis for the digital zombies’ animations. This method ensured that the zombies’ movements were grounded in real human actions, adding to the authenticity of their behavior.
Once the motion capture data was collected, the VFX team used the Alice software to simulate the behavior of thousands of zombies. Each digital zombie was programmed with specific goals, such as reaching a certain point or climbing over obstacles. The AI allowed these zombies to interact with each other and their environment in a realistic manner, creating the chaotic and overwhelming scenes seen in the movie.
The use of AI in crowd simulation is not new, but the scale and complexity of the scenes in World War Z pushed the technology to new heights. The VFX team had to ensure that the zombies moved in a way that was both believable and terrifying, which required a delicate balance of programming and artistic direction.
The result was a series of breathtaking and horrifying scenes that left audiences on the edge of their seats. The combination of motion capture, AI, and advanced VFX techniques allowed the filmmakers to create a zombie apocalypse that felt both epic and intimate, capturing the sheer terror of being overwhelmed by a relentless horde.
Source: Verge : Wired
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