MaMoCa helps movie, TV, and video game companies produce their products better, faster, and cheaper. Our Markerless Motion Capture technology is used to directly generate 3D content, producing editable, dynamic human models suitable for content generation across a wide spectrum of media. We acquire 1000 times more data, producing 100 times better human models, resulting in a factor of 10 improvement in production time over legacy systems. This in turn leads to a 90% cost reduction over current methodologies. MaMoCa technology can be used for a wide range of applications including: video games, movies, and TV; surgical planning, medical research, and ergonomic analysis; military and industrial training.
MaMoCa plans to generate revenues from four channels: system sales, software sales and subscriptions, maintenance and consulting services, and studio services. By our fifth year of operation, revenues generated from software sales and consulting services are 65% of gross revenues. Additionally, and excluded from our financial projections, MaMoCa is seeking co-production agreements with a number of smaller, independent game and TV studios. We are in final negotiations with an established entertainment company, Days End Productions, for our first animated TV program. The approach is to generate immediate revenues with our larger customers, and to offer our smaller customers inexpensive (or even free) production services, in exchange for an ownership interest in the resulting content.
With current motion capture technology, 10-100 small round balls are glued to the actor and must be kept on during the performance, producing 10-100 points of data and leading to a model of a human as a set of rigid links.
This data is recorded with 10-50 custom cameras. The MaMoCa technology does not use any markers or make-up or special clothing; rather, we project a light grid onto the performer, leaving the actor completely unencumbered, to emote and perform very naturally. MaMoCa technology produces hundreds of thousands of data points from 8 to 10 imaging pods. This dynamic scan data then drives a biologically realistic human model, resulting in smooth, natural movement that doesn't need to be improved by expensive hand animation.
Gene Alexander, PhD, CEO, has 20 years of industry and academic experience in motion capture engineering, most recently as a Lecturer and Senior Research Engineer at Stanford University. Dr. Alexander has co-founded two companies, acting as CTO. The most recent company, Imaging Therapeutics, was acquired by Conformis in 2004 and has five FDA approved products on the market.
The company advisors include Alan McCann, previously SVP & GM, Digital Media, Ravisent Technologies Ltd., and Sr. Director, Visual Products Group, ATI; Chris Bregler, Associate Professor NYU (on sabbatical at Industrial Light and Magic) and formerly with Disney Feature Animation; and John MacMahon, former CEO of Kerberos Proximal Solutions and CEO Mitralign.
The company board of directors include Michael Wasson, currently a Principal with Confetti Films (Warner Bros), and formerly an investment banker with Fiduciary Trust (acquired by Franklin Templeton); Robert Botch, Senior VP MicroProse, VP Marketing Epyx, and Director of Marketing for Sega of America; John Harbison, Tech Coast Angels (TCA) and formerly of Raytheon Ventures and Booz Allen; and Howard Lewis, TCA and former founder and CEO of Elms, Archive, and Orbis.
MaMoCa has filed four US and 4 PCT applications to date to protect the technology. These patents cover our work on the individual devices, calibration devices, operating multiple devices without interference, and merging data from multiple devices.
MaMoCa has some strong points and some weaknesses. The ability to directly generate animated 3D content from performances is a tremendous capability and opens up a number of new and very interesting business models. Getting rid of the markers, capture suits, and make-up of competing techniques is a significant advantage. Eliminating the need for after capture clean-up, which is either very time-consuming or very expensive, is a fantastic step forward. And of course human beings aren't stick figures, so a system that dynamically scans a subject and estimates a biological model is bound to produce more realistic animations. The main weaknesses appear to be the need for a controlled lighting environment. I'm not sure how they will be able to capture multiple subjects simultaneously. I also think the management team could benefit from some help, people with more domain expertise.
Finalist in AlwaysOn/Vator.tv's OnHollywood 2008 competition
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Dipu Ghosh