The Science of Face Generation

Advancements in facial recognition are not the only interesting face-related technologies making some astounding leaps these days. Driven by demand out of Hollywood, start-ups like Image Metrics are now taking the first steps to generate near perfect artificial faces that can be animated in real-time. The technology gives actors the ability to effortlessly bring digital characters to life with astounding realism; transferring every muscle movement and twitch to their digital puppet-selves.

For a look at what’s possible, check out this demo reel:



Hollywood and the gaming industry won’t have a monopoly on this technology though. I fear that these same tools might be used to undermine the evidentiary value of traditional surveillance video and even perpetrate new kinds of identity theft. When faces and bodies can be swapped in an out of video clips with this level of ease, and interactions that never existed in the real world can be recorded to video using only a laptop, it will be come even more critical that law enforcement find ways to separate face-fact from face-fiction.

Challenges and developments in "intelligent video surveillance"

Referred to variously as "intelligent video surveillance" or "intelligent scene analysis", video analytics employs algorithms and vector partitioning to detect unexpected movement or unusual behaviour that may pose a threat to people, property and infrastructure.

Common scenarios observed by analytics suites include border security, abnormal pedestrian or vehicular motion, suspect packages, and many forms of street crime or deviation from social norms. Such deviation can cover prostitution, kerb crawling, drug dealing and trackside intrusion. Here, ATM loitering and platform suicide behaviour are depicted.

As analytics continues to improve and the leading providers respond resourcefully to a broad range of user demands, scene analysis will gain wider acceptance in both government and commercial spheres. The scenarios detected will become increasingly subtle, allowing innovative end-users to improve public safety by employing this exciting technology.