Facial Animation : Past , Present and Future

Facial animation is now attracting more attention than ever before in its 25 years as an identifiable area of computer graphics. Imaginative applications of animated graphical faces are found in sophisticated human-computer interfaces, interactive games, multimedia titles, VR telepresence experiences, and, as always, in a broad variety of production animations. Graphics technologies underlying facial animation now run the gamut from keyframing to image morphing, video tracking, geometric and physical modeling, and behavioral animation. Supporting technologies include speech synthesis and artificial intelligence. Whether the goal is to synthesize realistic faces or fantastic ones, representing the dynamic facial likeness of humans and other creatures is giving impetus to a diverse and rapidly growing body of cross-disciplinary research. The panel will present a historical perspective, assess the state of the art, and speculate on the exciting future of facial animation.