Feature Animation at 1% Cost: One Pixel Brush Founder Leverages CC & iC for Real-Time Filmmaking

‘Christo the Civilized Barbarian’ is an animated series about a sharp-tongued barbarian that has earned multiple global film festival awards. Created by Shaddy Safadi and Loic Bramoulle, the team navigated the complexities of motion capture and animation using iClone and Rokoko tools. They showcased their 3D workflow at the Barcelona Film Festival in February 2025.

How Shaddy and Loic Integrated iClone and Rokoko for Cristo’s Animation

The Initial Dilemma: Choosing the Right Tools

During the early stages of Christo, we faced the difficult decision of selecting the right software pipeline. While many industry professionals advised using Maya due to its robust mocap capabilities and MotionBuilder integration, we chose Blender as the core animation tool for its versatility and growing popularity. And, frankly it’s the one 3D application we are familiar with due to extensive industry experience. However, relying solely on Blender posed challenges, particularly getting quick versions of the performance that can be instantly assessed and changed. Real filmmaking is about iteration and that’s where iClone became invaluable.

Overcoming Traditional Animation Hurdles

Traditional mocap workflows often involve multiple steps, including data cleanup, retargeting, and fine-tuning. By integrating iClone and Rokoko, we bypassed many of these hurdles. The Motion Live add-on for iClone made it very easy to quickly capture voice and face right onto the character and vet it instantly. We could record lines over and over again just sitting at a desk with no fancy gear besides an iPhone.

Then, because Shaddy did all the voices, he would do one character, then the second, then the third, and edit all the spaces between the talking in iClone so the conversation flowed. Then it was relatively easy to set up cameras in iClone to actually see the scene play out. Of course there was no body animation or backgrounds at this point but the voice, and facial data was there and it was good enough to send to colleagues for feedback. Only after that would we utilize the Rokoko’s suit doing our body performance to match the voice performance of each character. In this case, we recorded natively into the Rokoko application and just easily dragged it onto the character in Iclone and assigned the correct retargeting profile upon import. 

Another key advantage was cost-effectiveness. Unlike traditional mocap systems, which require expensive equipment and large studio spaces, the iClone-Rokoko setup offered a budget-friendly alternative without sacrificing too much quality. With animation you can get 85% of the way there for 1/10th the budget, so that was our goal. Make it good enough to sell the intention of the scene but not to noodle it into Pixar quality animation — as we didn’t have 100 million dollars.

Enter iClone and Rokoko: A Game-Changing Combination

Recognizing the need for a more agile solution, we turned to Reallusion’s iClone and Rokoko’s mocap suit. This combination proved transformative for Christo, as it enabled rapid recording and editing of character movements but more importantly rapid vetting of performances and scenes. Additionally, iClone’s compatibility with Blender meant that Loic could relatively easily transfer mocap data for further refinement and rendering.

For the body suit part, it’s not that difficult.

Setting up the facial and body mocap

After a series of trial and error, we managed to set up the facial mocap with my iPhone and Live FACE. Here’s a catch: one must connect the iPhone with the Ethernet cable shown below. You can easily purchase it on Amazon, and it maintains superb stability for facial data capture without the latency — I highly recommend it!

Seamless workflow: AccuLips for Lip Sync Animation

Beyond technical efficiency, iClone enhanced the team’s creative freedom. Once the facial animation performance is recorded, we can bring that motion data in iClone, and combine it with the use of AccuLips to quickly set the visemes for the talking characters. Witty conversation is the cornerstone of Christo and so accurate facial capture is top priority.

Experimenting with different character movements and expressions in real-time allowed us to explore various storytelling possibilities — thanks to iClone’s built-in facial puppet and the Edit Facial panel. This flexibility was crucial for Christo, a project that demanded a high level of emotional engagement from its characters.

Leveraging iClone’s Asset Library

Moreover, iClone’s library of pre-built assets and animations provided a valuable starting point for many scenes. By leveraging these resources, we could focus more on fine-tuning and less on building animations from scratch. Even Christo and Gary’s base designs began with a purchased stylized character pack from the Reallusion store. This approach not only saved time but also ensured compatibility with the robust iClone, and eventually Blender Rigify, rigging systems.

A Revolution for Indie Animation

The integration of iClone and Rokoko was more than just a technical solution; it was a creative revolution! The streamlined workflow, cost savings, and enhanced creative freedom enabled the Christo Project to produce high-quality animation within tight deadlines and budget constraints. Loic’s experience in iClone highlights the potential of modern animation tools in democratizing film production, making professional-grade animation accessible to indie creators.

The Reallusion Blender addon even allows us to leverage each application’s power seamlessly. For example, having the ability to customize characters in both CC4 & Blender, and continue to work on the animation after it’s been exported from iC8. Another example is doing final animation polish on the Rigify version of the characters, while they are rendered in Blender.

Conclusion: Empower Your Indie Animation Project

Our creative path with Christo demonstrates how indie filmmakers can leverage modern tools like iClone and Rokoko to produce professional-grade animation efficiently. By following these steps, you too can revolutionize your animation workflow and bring your creative vision to life, even on a tight budget. With the first episode of Christo done and the next one near completion, we will continue to advocate this workflow in various events and film festivals worldwide. Innovative solutions like iClone, Live Face, and Rokoko, empower small teams like us to push the boundaries of what’s possible in independent animation.

Other News: Official Selection at BARCIFF

Christo the Civilized Barbarian had its first-ever festival screening at BARCIFF – Barcelona Indie Filmmakers Festival, a showcase for innovative and independent films from around the world. The festival, known for its diverse selection of bold storytelling, provided the perfect stage for Christo to make its debut in front of an international audience.

Following the screening, I had the chance to participate in a Q&A session where we discussed the revolutionary animation pipeline we developed using iClone and a Rokoko motion capture suit. This approach allowed us to streamline production while maintaining a high-quality, cinematic feel — an essential breakthrough for independent 3D animation.

As a director, one of the most nerve-wracking moments was waiting for the audience’s reaction to the first joke. But when the laughter came, it was a huge relief. Seeing people connect with the humor and the world of Christo made all the challenges of production worth it. The festival was not only an exciting launchpad for the series but also a validation of our unconventional, tech-driven approach to animation.

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