What started seven months ago as just an idea slowly evolved into something much more tangible. An idea became a poster, a poster became a story, and a story is now becoming a film. All of this led our team to Stockholm, to the Goodbye Kansas Motion Capture Studio, for a 3-day shoot, where the data captured during the session will  become the solid foundation for our film’s animation.

Groundwork - The days before the shoot

Before the cameras rolled, the groundwork was already in motion.

Our layout team prepared all the files necessary for a handover with the GBK team. These files had to be carefully built so that when shooting, all the objects and actions from the actors would align with the worlds we had built digitally.

We also established two different teams to work on the shoot:

The internal TAOS team - Director: @Delcio Gomes; Writer: @Joana Vale; Producer: @Fernanda Nevitiv da Costa; Character Supervisor: @Christin Walther; Layout Supervisor: @Christina Sidoti; Animation Supervisor: @Guilherme Martins

The team at the Goodbye Kansas Motion Capture Studio - Motion Capture Supervisor: Samuel Tyskling; Shoot Producer: Axel Gärkman; Shoot Coordinator: Isabella Nilsson; Shoot Coordinator: Kim Seefried; Stunt Coordinator: Johan Lindqvist; Mocap Operator: Oskar Olsson; Mocap Operator: Ed Reeler; Props Master: David Sagesen; Facial Capture Operator: Eva Lindgren

We set ground rules and a clear shooting schedule - All shots had to be done within the same day they were scheduled for. Start Time: 8AM, Wrap Time: 5pm. There was a strong emphasis on approving A takes as soon as they hit the mark. Delcio, the Director, did not do alternate takes unless it was absolutely necessary.

Day 1 - Bridging Two Worlds

After all the preparation, it was time for action:

While actors suited up and facial capture scans were underway, the TAOS and GBK teams began aligning their vision for the shoot. Stunt choreography discussions took place early, ensuring that action beats were based on physical feasibility.

Our digital environments were translated into physical space, using floor markings on set. Key locations of our short - the Lab, Nest, Alley, Rooftop, and Apartment - were laid out at full scale, giving the actors a clear sense of space, distance, and movement boundaries. Props like doors, tables, drones, and obstacles were carefully placed on set to match the animation we wanted to achieve.

Key Insight:

Motion capture doesn’t begin on the day we step into the set: it starts months before, with lots of preparation and coordination between departments. Before actors can even step on stage, our world has to be constructed digitally, to guarantee the success of a shoot. Every shot and environment is planned out in the Previsualization Process using real world scale and stepped animation to block out the actions. The fight scenes were planned in depth with the stunt coordinators professional insight based on years of experience in virtual battles using their on set rigs.

Day 2 - Performance, Narrative & Discovery

Day 2 was solely focused on capturing the core narrative of the film.

The Magic Moment

Each take we did on the shoot followed a precise rhythm. The actors began in A-pose for calibration, while the mocap, sound, and camera teams ran their final checks. Only then would the call for “Action” reset everything into motion. One of the most powerful aspects of the process was the immediate feedback loop. Performances appeared instantly on screen as 3D characters - this allowed for real-time direction, where small adjustments to hand poses, posture, or timing could be made on the spot, often adapting the performance to better fit the proportions and behavior of the digital character, rather than the actor alone. The performance is also captured on camera with 3 witness cameras and a main view camera. The witness cameras are to capture still views of most angles so animators can later see exactly how the movements were set. The main camera is meant to feed the edit from the view closest to the previs or desired edit angle. It can show the 3D characters in action on set or the live action actors.

Establishing the Villain

The shoot opened with the Demon Pope in a control room setting. This performance relied heavily on the actor’s imagination, with no real screens, buttons, or interfaces, only the digital markings of the environment. The Director and Animation Lead worked closely together to adjust the actor’s gestures to ensure readability and accuracy in the digital character. Subtle actions helped define the Demon Pope’s character: by having controlled movements, we were able to create a sense of rising tension and explosive intent from the character.

Building Lavina

The alley sequence was key in defining how Lavina moves through the world. Her performance was built as a progression, from disoriented to cautious, to reactive, and finally into a full run, establishing a clear physical language for the character. We paid close attention to corner checks, shifts in pacing, and the tension carried through the actor’s body. This sequence also introduced her interaction with the drone, shaping eye-lines, timing, and emotional beats. Early stunt elements were integrated as well, including her entry through a window and jump off of a balcony. Since Lavina would throw off her arm and magnetically draw it back in, the actor had to imagine this was happening and leave pauses for the action. When the actor picked up the unicorn with two hands in the previs, Delcio immediately could see that this made an uneven platform with the bionic hand next to the human hand and asked the actor to use only one hand instead. That is the benefit of being able to watch the 3D characters on the large screen while shooting the human actors.

Main sequences

The Lab sequence marked a clear shift in tone, moving into a space defined by curiosity and unease in the story. Lavina’s interactions became more deliberate. This sense of exploration quickly gave way to conflict as the Demon Pope entered, tightening the space and escalating the tension. The performance focused on distance, pressure, and controlled movements, using proximity and pacing to build a palpable sense of threat.

The Rooftop sequence marked the first take at the film’s climax, capturing an early version of the final confrontation between Lavina and the Demon Pope. Before introducing wire work, the team focused on the fight choreography and the emotional progression of the scene, moving from the moment Lavina gets injured to the setup for her transformation.

Key challenges

By lunch, the production had fallen 7 scenes behind schedule. Until then, performances and stunts had been captured separately, slowing the workflow with constant resets. To recover time, the team shifted to recording both performers simultaneously, creating more dynamic interactions and a faster production rhythm. The result was a major turnaround: 35 scenes completed by the end of the day, with stronger and more connected performances overall.

Key Insight: Recording performers simultaneously not only accelerated production but also created more reactive, natural performances through shared timing and energy.

Day 3 - Stunts & Controlled Chaos

If day one focused on performance and story, day two brought physicality and impact into the process. The rooftop confrontation was revisited with full stunt integration, introducing wire rigs and aerial choreography that expanded the scale and intensity of the fight. Lifts, throws, and suspended movements allowed the action to become faster and far more aggressive, requiring close coordination between performers, stunt riggers, and the safety team throughout the shoot.

Key stunts

The Lab confrontation was done with a strong emphasis on physicality, transforming the scene from dialogue-driven tension into full-impact combat. Throws, and collisions with props brought weight and resistance into the performances, while the environment itself became part of the action through dynamic interactions with tables, windows, and surrounding space. Alongside the combat work, the team also focused on traversal and vertical movement, capturing how Lavina navigates the world using her mechanical arm for grappling and aerial pulls.

The Apartment chase quickly became the most complex sequence of the shoot, combining performance, stunt work, and spatial choreography into one continuous action block. Lavina moved through tight corridors while unlocking doors, reacting to obstacles, and rapidly changing direction under pressure. The introduction of the 404’s added another layer of chaos into the shoot, with multiple performers flooding the hallways and creating timing and spacing challenges across the stage.

The Close-Quarters combat sequences captured dodges, tackles, slides, and the tactical use of Lavina’s mech-arm, including a standout moment where she slid beneath an enemy before pulling them down. As the tension escalated, the sequence evolved into a claustrophobic escape scenario, with doors barricaded by props and enemies breaking through barriers.

Throughout the day, complex stunt actions were carefully split between performers and reactions, allowing the stunt team, riggers, and actors to safely execute high-impact moments while maintaining the intensity of the scenes.

Key Insight: As the action intensified, the challenge extended beyond performance, evolving into the complex coordination of movement, space, and stunt choreography.

In between the chaos and creation

Across the three days of the shoot, a clear contrast emerged. Day 1 focused on preparation and setting up; Day 2 focused on intent - performance, emotion, and narrative clarity; Day 3 focused on stunt work, bringing physicality and force into the process.

Motion capture is an amazing and unique process, where reality and imagination mix together, allowing actors to perform inside a set, while their movements are instantly translated into usable digital data. Through constant iteration, direction, and collaboration, that raw energy gradually takes shape, transforming the disorder of production into something cohesive and meaningful.

Key Insight: Motion capture lives at the intersection of live performance and animation technology, where chaos, iteration, and collaboration are essential parts of shaping believable stories.

The Finish Line

This shoot is something our team will carry with them for a long time. Across 3 intense days, our team faced technical challenges, constant adjustments, physical exhaustion, and the pressure of bringing an ambitious vision to life. But somewhere within that chaos, the team grew stronger, more united, more resilient, and even more committed to seeing The Alchemy of a Storm through to the finish line.

What happened inside the studio was much more than just a capture session: it was trust, collaboration, and hundreds of creative decisions unfolding moment by moment. Every challenge pushed the project forward, shaping not only the film in itself, but also the people creating it.

When we all went back to our various homes, we remember the dinners, the whiteboard with a game plan, the sketch books, the fight scene planning in the middle of the restaurant, the walks around Stockholm, and the new friends we made. The shoot at the Goodbye Kansas Studio was at the center of our great adventure on a creative project we will all never forget.