Toronto-based animation, VR & AR development studio has announced a slate of titles to be showcased at Kidscreen Summit (Feb. 11-14, Miami). The projects utilize a combination of best-in-class motion capture, facial tracking middleware and real-time rendering powered by Unreal Engine, brought together at Dark Slope’s new 3,000 square foot mo-cap facility to create highly stylized animation.
Scarygirl (TV Series) – From acclaimed artist Nathan Jurevicius, Dark Slope takes the familiar graphic novel and adapts it into a stylized 3D world. Using the real-time rendering power of the Unreal Engine, facial capture and motion tracking, Dark Slope achieves a stunning look and feel. A related warehouse scale multiplayer free-roam VR action experience, Scarygirl Mission Maybee, will launch later this year. More details will be revealed soon.
Ready Set Dance (Animated Shorts – Nickelodeon Australia) – Using the modelling team at Vishus Australia and Dark Slope’s state-of-the-art motion capture facility, talented performance artists’ dance moves come to life. The program features fun and energetic short-form dance videos hosted by a pair of animated animal characters for Nickelodeon Australia’s new series Ready Set Dance.
Dark Slope has also partnered with New Zealand’s Pukeko Pictures on several new projects including location-based entertainment, Magic Leap augmented reality experiences and an original television series.
Dark Slope’s COO and Head of Development Dan Fill and Creative Director Nathan Jurevicius will be on-hand at Kidscreen with more details, and in search of potential partners interested in exploring new forms of animation that combine real time rendering, facial capture and motion tracking.
“While this is just a fraction of the studio’s capabilities and what we have planned for the year, we’re excited to showcase these innovative projects at Kidscreen next month,” said CJ Hervey, president at Dark Slope. “Our programming team is at the forefront of game-engine driven, real-time animation technologies and practices. I couldn’t be prouder of what we’ve accomplished with these amazing works and I’m looking forward to soon revealing all of the other incredible projects the team has been producing.”
