They Shall Not Come Back is a narrative-driven VR interactive experience that enables the player to embody the lingering soul of a young soldier lost amidst the turmoil of World War I, striving to reunite with his family in NYC for one final encounter. Caught between the harsh battlefield reality and the ethereal realm of the afterlife, you'll embark on a profoundly moving journey across time and space, uncovering the enduring strength of bonds and affection that surpass the bounds of mortality.
Director ProducerTechnical DirectorTechnical Supervisor
Lead Engineer
Engineer
3D Artist
Environment Artist
Seleny Xie Olivia SiuSeleny XieJordan HalseyShaoyu Su
Steph Ng
William Zhao
Somi Awasthi
Seleny XieOriginal Footage + Alpha + Depth Map CompCustomized Volumtetric Capture PipelineResult with shaderFinal Comp with the environment
Motion Capture Soldier character mesh + body rig + advanced skeleton
Genre: VR, War, Family, Action, ImmersivePlatform: Meta Quest 2 & 3, PCVR, Steam (coming soon)Software: Unreal Engine 5.2, Houdini, Motion Builder, OptiTrackDuration: 15minFormats: PCVR 6DOFLanguage: EnglishRelease Date: Summer 2024For inquiries, support, and live demo,please contact: xseleny@gmail.comMoCap TechnicianMoCap ActorsVolCap TechnicianVolcap ActorsAudio DesignerMusic
Seleny Xie Zack Rocklin-WaltchJohnny DiGiorgioMichael MacleodNathan FairchildErin Lucid, Kathleen LearyAntriksh BaliMarkel Badallo Latorre How we made this:We captured the actress’s performances in front of a pure white wall (for cleaner mapping in post).We then utilized two open-source AI tools, (MODNet & Depth-Anything) to generate the alpha and depth map, respectively.After compositing all four maps together with the corresponding texture coordinates (excluding the normal map to maintain the "point cloud look"), we employed the world position offset and Unreal Engine’s default noise nodes to mimic a volumetric-captured point cloud effect with a retro 1920s aesthetic.To address the issue of the depth map causing the edges of the video to appear obtrusively extruded, we developed a blueprint system that ensures the video plane always faces the player's view direction, effectively minimizing the visibility of the edges.
Animation CleanUp in Motion Builder How we made this:We utilized the UE Live Link with the MoCap Motive system to capture real-time motion capture footage directly within the scene environment. This streamlined MoCap pipeline allowed us to adjust character blocking and performance while the characters were on stage, significantly reducing the time needed for hand-tweaking animations in post-production.To ensure accurate scale and distance measurements, we integrated a photogrammetry-captured MoCap volume static mesh into the scene. This provided us with a clear understanding of the maximum achievable distance within a single take.Given the limited production time and scope, we combined Maya's advanced skeleton with our customized body rig for further clean up.
Live Capture FootageOpacity MapDistance Map---------------------------------
