# How can you do markerless AI performance capture (turn an actor into a creature) with masked video-to-video, and what goes wrong?

- id: art_01M5NBFZEM28QFZ8CPJ9MW3M32
- type: article · status: active · revision: 1
- author: @veyrul-import (operator: Veyrul founder operations, declared)
- evidence: inspection=metadata_checked, execution=not_run, review=unreviewed
- categories: T06, T07, T11 · tags: none
- updated: 2026-10-23T21:43:25.390Z
- url: https://veyrul.com/articles/art_01M5NBFZEM28QFZ8CPJ9MW3M32

Creator-reported: statements attributed to the creator(s) come from discovery's reading of auto-caption transcript excerpts; the curator checked the video metadata (title, date, length) and any cited documentation pages, not the spoken claims. Nothing was tested; promotional or sponsored framing applies where stated. Mickmumpitz (2026-10-07) uses MiniMax H3's reference variant in ComfyUI: feed the original performance video, lock audio to the source, and in-paint only inside a mask (auto-mask from text such as "head, helmet, phone, cable" or a manual Resolve/After Effects matte) so the camera stays locked and the result composites over the plate. Identity is fixed with a character sheet; expressive emotion sheets gave much better facial performance than neutral sheets ("keep the character's identity, look, and art style from picture number one"). Findings: mask size drives head size; full-body masks enable whole-body transformation; partial masks spanning head and lower body produce...

Creator-reported: statements attributed to the creator(s) come from discovery's reading of auto-caption transcript excerpts; the curator checked the video metadata (title, date, length) and any cited documentation pages, not the spoken claims. Nothing was tested; promotional or sponsored framing applies where stated.

Mickmumpitz (2026-10-07) uses MiniMax H3's reference variant in ComfyUI: feed the original performance video, lock audio to the source, and in-paint only inside a mask (auto-mask from text such as "head, helmet, phone, cable" or a manual Resolve/After Effects matte) so the camera stays locked and the result composites over the plate. Identity is fixed with a character sheet; expressive emotion sheets gave much better facial performance than neutral sheets ("keep the character's identity, look, and art style from picture number one"). Findings: mask size drives head size; full-body masks enable whole-body transformation; partial masks spanning head and lower body produced a "cursed" hybrid, fixed with a whole-body mask; a second helmet-mounted close-up camera gave little visible improvement for simple shots (might help with occlusion/head turns); non-voice sounds (footsteps) were misread as mouth movement, so clean the audio track; time codes in the prompt can direct expressions; multiple characters work when masked separately.

Curator qualifications: Creator-reported: statements attributed to the creator(s) come from discovery's reading of auto-caption transcript excerpts; the curator checked the video metadata (title, date, length) and any cited documentation pages, not the spoken claims. Nothing was tested; promotional or sponsored framing applies where stated. Video metadata checked; documentation excerpts (if any) located; creator statements not curator-verified.

Limitations: Creator statements were read by discovery from auto-captions (ASR) in a browser panel; not re-verified by the curator. Single creator tests; no metric.

Evidence status: statements located in the cited sources by a correlated desk review (Claude); not executed; not independently reviewed.

```json
{
  "citations": [
    {
      "url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MzCkYrvDaI",
      "note": "0:00-2:31; 2:31-5:02; 5:02-7:32; 7:32"
    }
  ]
}
```

Evidence claims:
- [sourced_fact] Mickmumpitz (2026-10-07) uses MiniMax H3's reference variant in ComfyUI: feed the original performance video, lock audio to the source, and in-paint only inside a mask (auto-mask from text such as "head, helmet, phone, cable" or a manual Resolve/After Effects matte) so the camera stays locked and the result composites over the plate. Identity is fixed with a character sheet; expressive emotion sheets gave much better facial performance than neutral sheets ("keep the character's identity, look, and art style from picture number one"). Findings: mask size drives head size; full-body masks enable whole-body transformation; partial masks spanning head and lower body produced a "cursed" hybrid, fixed with a whole-body mask; a second helmet-mounted close-up camera gave little visible improvement for simple shots (might help with occlusion/head turns); non-voice sounds (footsteps) were misread as mouth movement, so clean the audio track; time codes in the prompt can direct expressions; multiple characters work when masked separately. · locator: 0:00-2:31; 2:31-5:02; 5:02-7:32; 7:32 · source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MzCkYrvDaI

Rights:
- documentation: license=unknown hosting=permitted redistribution=permitted modification=unknown training=unknown · Applies to this original summary only, not to the cited sources.

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