Industry-first markerless camera tracking software solution democratizes the use of airborne AR elements, enabling creatives to easily and efficiently create and track dramatic, high flying 3D graphics in realtime with a drone.
Pixotope, the leading software platform for end-to-end realtime virtual production solutions, today announced Pixotope Tracking – Fly Edition (Pixotope Fly), a new camera tracking software solution that dramatically simplifies creating and tracking augmented reality elements with drones and cable cameras. The unique markerless technology eliminates the complex set up and creative constraints imposed by tracking markers, enabling productions and live events to engage audiences with dynamic realtime aerial graphics.
“We’re incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved with Pixotope Fly,” says David Dowling, Chief Revenue Officer at Pixotope. “It eliminates the resource-intensive set up required of existing drone tracking technology; it needs no specialist sensor cameras, markers, or proprietary hardware to work and it’s deceptively simple to use. All you need is a drone or cable cam and the software to get started. What would have previously required a helicopter and hollywood blockbuster caliber post production can now be achieved with a single software solution in real time.”
Pixotope Fly has already been put to the test on major national live broadcast coverage of American stock car racing by Pixotope creative partner, Silver Spoon Animation. In one instance, as the Pixotope Fly-calibrated drone pulled away into a wide shot, an animated graphic of the winning driver next to their car surrounded by stunning real-time particle effects was shown to viewers to celebrate the victory. In addition, Silver Spoon delivered a gravity-defying RV stunt jump over the track as an AR advertisement.
“Our client wanted something that viewers had never seen before; but to deliver a first-of–kind AR graphics package we needed a first-of-its-kind technology solution,” says Dan.
Streamlined Technology Enhances Creativity and Reduces Risk
Pixotope Fly ushers in a new era for virtual production with key benefits such as:
- Streamlined set up and operation: Marker-based tracking systems require a huge lift in terms of resources and preparation of the filming environment; someone must physically and strategically place markers on the ground. With Pixotope Fly, this process is removed completely thanks to its software-based markerless TTL technology, which reduces time and resource cost needed to get up and running.
- Untethered creativity: Pixotope Fly enables producers to freely roam through the sky without worrying about losing sight of markers, a common occurrence in live environments thanks to changing light, weather, and other unplanned interferences. Anywhere a drone can be flown, AR can be added. The software does all the work, no sensor camera required.
- Reduced risk for live productions: Marker-based systems require producers to keep drones within a very precise area. If something obscures the markers on the ground during a live broadcast, the whole illusion falls apart and the tracking capabilities of the drone are gone. With Pixotope Fly, the software is updating its point of reference continually so users aren’t at the mercy of the markers in a hard-to-control environment.
“Beyond the creative and cost benefits, Pixotpe Fly affords users reduced risk of failure during live broadcasts. With no physical markers to speak of, producers don’t need to worry about a catastrophic live tracking failure because a marker became obscured somehow,” concludes Dowling.
About Pixotope Fly
As a markerless, through the lens (TTL) tracking solution, Pixotope Fly uses computer vision technology to leverage video from the onboard camera to identify anchor points in the natural live environment such as rocks, trees, buildings, etc., to lock onto and track against 3D graphics. The software uses these natural anchor points to generate a virtual point cloud set of digital tracking markers which respond and adapt to changes in the environment. This means that producers can add exciting AR graphics anywhere the drone can film, indoors or outdoors, for greater creative freedom and a more dynamic viewer experience.
Pixotope Fly Availability
Pixotope Fly is available immediately to all existing Pixotope customers. For more information, please visit https://www.pixotope.com/product/pixotope-camera-tracking.
About Pixotope
Dedication. Determination. Trust. Pixotope is at the forefront of democratizing virtual production and empowering content creators with accessible solutions for boundary-pushing immersive storytelling.
Having been proven on the most demanding live productions in the world, Pixotope offers media content owners and producers a reliable and sustainable Virtual Production Platform on which to build their media business.
Pixotope uniquely allows media creators to tell stories with the visual impact of high-end feature films, combined with the connected and scalable nature of online content and the immersive and social experience of video games.
With global 24/7 operations and a direct presence on four continents, Pixotope Technologies is on a mission to promote accessibility, ease of use, and customer success in Virtual Production for all media creators.
Simian Gets An Evolutionary Boost For Collaboration, Reveals “Teams”
Simian, the showreel-building, review & approval, and production asset management platform used globally by creative leaders, is kicking off this fall season with a substantial leap forward for collaboration and project management – with more updates on the way during the holidays!
The new feature, aptly dubbed “Teams”, makes it easier than ever for users to give project responsibilities to team members and clients alike. “You can never have too many options when it comes to permission levels,” says Jay Brooks, Simian’s Chief Technology Officer. “Teams provides a streamlined way to assign multiple users to a project at once.”
“Teams are very powerful, but creating one is effortless,” Brian Atton, Simian’s Chief Operating Officer explains. “Simply enter a Team name, add members, and then apply the newly made Team to any desired project. You can even invite temporary guests without changing settings for other projects or needing to create a new Team.”
“We love helping our clients by providing efficient tools to improve their workflow, and this has been a frequently requested feature as of late,” shares Kellie Atton, Head of Sales at Simian. “It feels great to get Teams out into the wild because I know it’s going to be tremendously helpful to everyone who uses it”.
Teams is now available exclusively to Simian’s enterprise clients. Simian plans to release more product upgrades and enhancements during Q4 2024 and 2025 for enterprise and non-enterprise users, continuing its ongoing evolution as the industry’s leading production asset management solution.
For more information on Simian upgrades and features, visit https://www.gosimian.com/
About Simian
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