Along with another five hours of wholesome fun, the CBC is bringing virtual set technology to kids this fall, making the public network the first Canadian broadcaster to take the leap into creating CG environments for its hosts with a system of this kind.

CBC is also using hardware from its virtual set configuration along with a motion-capture suit to introduce its first performance animated character, Coquette, to its youth block of programming.

For the new CBC Playground children’s programming lineup, which launched Sept. 28, the network added new shows as well as a pair of live hosts who will appear in and interact with ever-changing backdrops, courtesy of the Orad Cyberset O system and a serious training initiative by the CBC to make it all work.

The virtual set system allows for the integration of performers Drew Carnwath and Lisa Richardson into computer-generated sets which move in perspective, allowing the hosts to walk in front of or behind virtual objects. The sets also allow for depth of field changes and the generation of shadows, textures and reflections.

CBC manager of digital production tools Rob Ramsay says the network opted for the Cyberset system from Israel-based Orad because it could accommodate the particular production demands of the show, like the use of Steadicam-type camera movements.

‘This system was the only one you could use in that environment,’ says Ramsay. ‘So we were not only able to do things like pan, tilt, zoom and dolly, but we could also roll the camera, meaning there is pretty much freedom of movement for the camera throughout the set.

That capability helps to ‘sell the whole 3D aspect of the set,’ says Ramsay, in that the camera can actually be walked into the set and people can walk around 3D objects.

Before the show went on the air, the network had already created a few sets, including a West Coast and an East Coast tree environment as well as a birthday set. Ramsay says new sets will be added on a monthly basis.

In the initial phase of its virtual set experience, the CBC enlisted the help of U.K.-based Molinare – a production company with extensive experience in the modeling of virtual sets – to assist in developing the network’s first few sets and in training its artists.

Currently two CBC staff, one in Toronto and one in Winnipeg, are involved in the creation of the sets, which are exchanged over the CBC’s internal network. The sets then have to be loaded into the Orad system and viewed with virtual cameras linked to the real cameras within the set.

‘We don’t really get a feel for how well the set is going to perform until we actually drive it within the set environment,’ says Ramsay. ‘We have to get the whole system up and get the talent walking in amongst the objects and do long shots, close-ups, etc. to see how it responds. And then we go through the whole tweaking process again until we get it right and that set is released to production.’

The network’s team uses Intergraph boxes as well as SGI Octanes to generate the sets, with the actual virtual set running on an SGI Onyx 2. Software packages like Alias|Wavefront Maya and PowerAnimator, Kinetix 3D Studio Max and Side Effects Houdini are used to model the sets, which are then brought into a gaming software package called GameGen from San Jose-based Multigen. After tweaking, the set is brought onto the Onyx2.

With the SGI component of the virtual set equation dropping in price over the past few years and the capabilities of the technology increasing, Ramsay says the system has been an efficient way to create sets for the kids’ block.

‘We’re basically unlimited as to what sets we can pop our people into,’ says Ramsay. ‘That’s why we went with it. You’ll see a lot of set changes and it basically takes two people to do, not a carpentry shop anymore.’

The virtual set technology is also cost effective for a kids’ application, says Ramsay. ‘I don’t think it’s ready to go into the newsroom because it’s still probably cheaper to spend $20,000 on constructing a set you’re going to use for five years. But because this is aimed at kids and we want things to change quickly, it’s the way to go.’

The network is reusing the virtual set hardware together with an Ascension motion-capture suit to create animated performance character Coquette, a French-speaking bulldog.

In the case of performance animation, the CBC worked with San Francisco-based Protozoa, which helped develop the initial character and train artists. With this ramp-up phase behind them, CBC’s artists will now be generating their own additional characters in the coming months.

Protozoa has done extensive performance animation work with international broadcasters, with much expertise in the area of speech recognition for the talent, which helps in the proper shaping of a character’s lips when it speaks. The company is currently undertaking a rewrite – a Maya front end – for its Alive performance animation software that will be used by the CBC team.