Resnick Interactive Group » JB Blanc

Facial Motion Capture Test With JB Blanc

Carmen Quinonez — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 18:54:01 +0000

Last week, the whole team at Resnick Interactive ventured over to the studio for a Motion Capture (MOCAP) test for a video game we’ll be working with in the near future. With the help of the always charming JB Blanc, we all had a great day in the studio filled with new technology and lots of eyeliner. Eyeliner? Yep, eyeliner. The MOCAP camera uses dots (in this case, provided by liquid eyeliner) to pick up on and track facial movements. Phillip from MOCAP Design was the lucky gentleman that got to dot eyeliner all over JB’s face. For those of us not getting outfitted with little black dots across our faces, the entire process was pretty hilarious.

Once made-up with tiny black dots all over his face, JB and Phillip geared up to put on the first of two MOCAP cameras- but not before Todd tested it out first. That’s his right as the director, of course! After Todd was done testing out the helmets, JB put on the infrared camera and got down to business running lines for the video game. As always, his lovely British accent left everyone in the studio totally floored. Our script for the day allowed him to really get into some passionate yelling, which was highly entertaining to both hear and watch.

Next up, Phillip set up JB with the second MOCAP camera. Sensing a great photo opportunity, JB was kind enough to ham it up for the camera. This begs the question- is there anything better than a mustached man with eyeliner dots on his face, wearing a goofy helmet, making crazy faces? We think not.

Our entire experience with this MOCAP test was a lot of fun. Time spent the studio playing with MOCAP is time well spent. At Resnick Interactive, we’re all looking forward to doing a lot more MOCAP work and, as always, continuing to work with JB Blanc.

In Their Own Voice: JB Blanc

Resnick Interactive Group — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 17:19:11 +0000

Welcome to In Their Own Voice, a series of interviews with some of the excellent voice actors we work with. To kick off this new column, we have JB Blanc sharing what it’s like to prepare for a recording session.

Transcript: You usually don’t have a lot of clues, you’ve gotta go in and make snap decisions – which is fantastic if you’ve got enough experience to be able to do that – that’s the best way to do it, because then you’re not bound by the constraints of any preconceptions that you might have. If you decide what a character is before you come in then the producer goes, “Actually, no, this guy’s 26, and, you know, from East India.” You—then you’re in trouble because then you’ve gotta react very quickly.

So, I think—I think a lot of younger actors would like as much information as possible before they come to work; I prefer flying by the seat of my pants because then you’ve got to rely on your instincts, you’ve got to make quick decisions, and you’ve got to be 100% committed to them.

Actor Spotlight: JB Blanc

Resnick Interactive Group — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 04:50:33 +0000

This months spotlight is on voice actor JB Blanc. JB was born in Paris, France to an English mother and a French father. He moved with his mother to Yorkshire, England at the age of four, where he was raised and attended school, eventually graduating from The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in 1990.

He worked extensively in theatre in Britain for over 15 years, including a three-year stint at London’s Royal National Theatre. His theatre work encompassed everything from avant-garde physical theater companies to world tours of Shakespeare plays and classical Greek tragedy.

His film career was essentially launched by his highly acclaimed role as Luigi Vampa in 2002’s The Count of Monte Cristo, and following that success, he moved to Los Angeles where he now lives. Film and TV roles soon followed on productions such as Pirates of the Caribbean, Iron Cross, Tristan and Isolde, Garfield, Biohazard, NYPD Blue, Prison Break, CSI: NY, The Company and The Unit. In 2006, he made his US theatre debut in iwitness at The Mark Taper Forum in downtown Los Angeles.

JB is also a highly accomplished voice actor with projects in film, animation, video games and commercials. He plays several major characters in the forthcoming Marvel/BET production, The Black Panther and is a regular on Naruto and Bleach. Recent video game work includes Alighieri in Dante’s Inferno for EA, Darksiders: Wrath of War, World of Warcraft, Red Faction Guerilla, Tales of Vesperia, Tales of Symphonia, Arcania, Silent Hill, Coraline (in which he voice-matched Ian McShane), Wanted: Weapons of Fate and many others. He has also been a dialect and acting coach for several years, is resident Dialect Coach at The Fountain Theatre in Los Angeles and has worked on productions in the UK and the US , including more recently, The Informers and The History Boys at the Ahmanson Theatre, Los Angeles.

Theatre: The Blue Room (The Odyssey) Shining City, Coming Home, Photograph 51, Gem of the Ocean, Accomplices, Victory, (Fountain Theatre) The Importance of Being Earnest, Summer And Smoke, Major Barbara (LA Theaterworks), The History Boys, iwitness (Mark Taper Forum, CTG) The Oedipus Plays, Mary Stuart, Chips With Everything, Flight (Royal National Theatre, London), The Duel (Lyric, London), Romeo and Juliet, Love for Love (New End Theatre, London), The Lizzie Play (London and World Tour), The Taming of the Shrew, The Phantom Lady, Julius Caesar, The Love of a Good Man (Arts Threshold, London), A Comedy of Errors (New Victoria, Stoke). Film: Iron Cross, The Informers, The Incredible Hulk, The Count of Monte Cristo, Shadowlands, Tristan & Isolde, 102 Dalmations, Moonlight Serenade, Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties. Television: CSI: New York, Raising The Bar, The Unit, Crash, The Company, NYPD Blue, Dr Vegas, The Bill, Vanity Fair, London’s Burning.