Patent ID: 7209181
Filing Date: 2007-04-24
Classification: G03B,H04N

Abstract:
1. In a cinematographic system for creation of a film and/or video production, wherein the action figures are controlled by rods manipulated by puppeteers on a virtual production set, the improvement comprising: a virtual production set, including a key-colored background screen, a stage, and at least one action puppet character manipulated by puppeteers on said virtual production set; said action puppet character being positioned on a support structure, said support structure being arranged to provide a desired vertical location on said key-colored background screen for said action puppet character, and including the use of diffused lighting in said support structure to eliminate shadows on said virtual production set; at least two (2) cameras, each of said cameras being positioned relative to an action puppet character to record, in real-time, at least two action images of said puppet character, or two different puppet characters on said virtual production set, each of said two action images of said puppet character being taken at the same time from a different camera angle, one image being a close-up shot and one image being a master shot and each of said two action images of said two different puppet characters being taken at different times on the same virtual production set or at the same time on two separate but identical virtual production sets; means for recording the position of the camera taking the master shot image within the virtual production set relative to the action puppet character; means for simultaneously compositing each of said real-time images with the master shot image being composited with a suitable virtual background image and the close-up shot image being composited with a digitally created still image; and means for simultaneously compositing each of said composited images in a multiple composite image, said composite images being integrated by separate compositing modules, so that each composited image appears within an allocated portion of a given image frame, and each allocated portion of said image frame being adjusted relative to one another to create depth and/or perspective of one composited image relative to the other, said allocated portion of said image frame being adjusted relative to one another to create interaction and/or complimentary action of one puppet character, or puppet character image, from one composited image with another puppet character, or puppet character image, from another composited image with a given image frame.