A new research centre at the University of Bath will use motion-capture technology to turn actors' performances into digital characters for blockbuster films and video games, while also helping injured soldiers walk again and elite athletes shave seconds off their times. The Centre for the Analysis of Motion, Entertainment Research and Applications (CAMERA) addresses a gap between cutting-edge visual technology and its practical use across industries. While Hollywood and game studios already capture human movement, the underlying science of how to model, analyse, and reanimate that motion remains fragmented across computer vision, biomechanics, and human-computer interaction. CAMERA will unite these fields. If successful, the centre could transform visual effects production—making digital characters more realistic and cheaper to produce—through partnerships with The Imaginarium and The Foundry. Beyond entertainment, the same technology will be applied to human performance enhancement: Bath researchers have already helped athletes win 15 Olympic and World Championship medals. In healthcare, the centre will work with the Ministry of Defence on rehabilitation and assistive technologies for disabled ex-soldiers. The centre builds on an existing doctoral training programme partnered with 35 UK companies.
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The Centre for the Analysis of Motion, Entertainment Research and Applications (CAMERA) will build on and extend existing impactful relationships between leading researchers at the University of Bath supported by investment from the University, from external partners and with the close participation of Bath's EPSRC Doctoral Training Centre for Digital Entertainment (CDE). Building on existing expertise in Applied Visual Technology and closely linked with the CDE, CAMERA will draw on knowledge, skills and outputs across multi-disciplinary research areas. These include Computer Vision, Graphics, Motion-Capture, Human-Computer Interaction, Biomechanics and Healthcare, underpinned by a strong portfolio of DE research funding from RCUK and other funders. CAMERA will deliver Applied Visual Technology into our partners companies and their industries, to achieve high economic, societal and cultural impact. Bath leads the UK in innovative creative industry research and training for post-graduates through our CDE, which is contractually partnered with 35 innovative UK companies. Growing from our established core strength in the area of Visual Technology - capturing, modelling and visualising the real world - and our strong historical foundation of entertainment-delivered research, CAMERA will focus on high-impact work in movies, TV visual vffects (VFX) and video games with partners at the The Imaginarium and The Foundry, two of the world's leading visual entertainment companies. This focused collaboration will push the boundaries of technology in the area of human motion capture, understanding and animation, and artist driven visual effects production, feeding into our existing CDE partnerships. From this strong foundation, we will extend and apply visual technology to new areas of high economic, societal and cultural impact within the digital economy theme. These include Human Performance Enhancement, with partners in British Skeleton and BMT Defence Services; and Health, Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies, with partners in the Ministry of Defence. CAMERA is well placed to lead the application of Visual Technology in these new directions: Bath researchers have helped athletes to win 15 Olympic and World Championship medals in the last 10 years and have contributed significantly to national efforts in integrating ex-soldiers with disabilities into civilian life.
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