Generative Effects

Generative effects utilize generative adversarial networks (GANs) to generate a new human face with superficial characteristics.

You can use the following generative effects to customize the specified area of a face:

These generative effects are applied to match the skin and provide a seamless look. A generative effect will always apply to Face 0—the first detected face.

Tip

To create a wig effect, add a Hair Eraser object, followed by a Hair Segmentation object.

Note

With Hair Eraser applied, Portrait Segmentation will still detect the user’s true silhouette

In the Demo Effect section, you will learn how to create animated eyebrows using a generative effect. You can download the following file to get started:

↓ animated_eyebrows.zip

Add a Generative Effects Object

Go to the Hierarchy panel and click the Add button [+] > Generative Effects. Select one of the following generative effects you would like to apply to a face:

• Hair Eraser
• Eyebrow Eraser
• Smile
• Pucker

Adding a Generative Effects object will automatically add a corresponding Generative Effects Camera object in the Hierarchy panel. You can also find the Generative Effects component in the Inspector panel.

Adding multiple Generative Effects objects may slow down the performance of your effect. It is recommended that you limit the usage of generative effects. Multiple generative effects targeting the same facial area should not be used together. For example, Pucker and Smile should not be combined.

Object Hierarchy

Starting in Effect House v2.0.0, the Hair Eraser, Eyebrow Eraser, Smile, and Pucker objects, in addition to their corresponding Generative Effects Camera object, are automatically added to the Generative Effects render group, or container, in the Hierarchy panel. Learn more about render groups.

Demo Effect: Animated Eyebrow Editor

In this demo, the Eyebrow Eraser generative effect is applied to remove the eyebrows. Then a texture sequence is applied to a 3D Face object to apply the animated eyebrows.

If you haven’t already, start by downloading the following project file:

↓ animated_eyebrows.zip

This project file consists of a template that makes use of the Animation Sequence component, which allows you to play any animated texture sequence on a face.

Use the Template

This template includes two textures for you to apply as your eyebrows’ animated texture sequence. You can find the two textures, Eyebrows_AnimatedTex and Grow_AnimatedTex, in the Assets panel.

In the Hierarchy panel, click the 3D Face [CHANGE TEXTURE ON THE ANIMATION SEQUENCE] scene object.

In the Inspector panel, you can see its Animation Sequence component, which is responsible for playing the defined texture sequence.

The default texture sequence is set to Eyebrows_AnimatedTex. You change it by clicking the Texture Sequence field and selecting an available texture. In this demo, there are two texture sequences available for you to use. To see what the other animated texture sequence looks like, select Grow_AnimatedTex and click OK.

You can see that the animated eyebrows have changed. You can play around with the other properties of the Animation Sequence component to further customize the eyebrows!

Create a Custom Animation

You can create your own animation texture sequence and import it into Effect House. First locate the reference image included in the downloaded animated_eyebrows.zip file. Open the Assets folder, 3D Face Assets folder, and then the Textures folder to locate 3DFace_UV [USE AS REFERENCE TO PLACE EYEBROWS].

This is the reference image you can use in your preferred animation tool. This image provides a good reference for the placement of facial features and makes it easier for you to design eyebrows.

Once you’ve created your animation texture sequence, export it as PNG files. Then in Effect House, go to the Assets panel and click the Add button [+] > Import > Texture Sequence.

Select your exported images and click Open. You can now see your imported animation texture sequences in the Assets panel. Apply your customized eyebrows by selecting your animation texture sequence in the Animation Sequence component, just as we did above!