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Sports production services
Capture athletes with production-ready detail
Mimic Productions provides 3D body scanning for sports teams, broadcasters, brands and studios that need accurate digital human assets for real-world and virtual use. Our photogrammetry-based workflow captures high-resolution topology and rich texture data, with studio and on-location options from Berlin.
For sports projects, the value of a scan depends on where it enters the pipeline. A body scan can support character creation for games, training visuals for VR and AR, digital doubles for campaign scenes, or avatar development for virtual spaces. We also scan faces and full bodies, and can work from a raw scan when your pipeline needs re-topology for animation-ready use.
Production challenges
Common sports scanning challenges
The best scan is the one that fits the next stage of production, not just the camera setup.
01
Likeness under time pressure
Sports schedules can be tight, so capture must be planned around training, travel and promotional windows while still preserving accurate body shape, surface detail and facial identity.
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Balancing realism and technical limits
Virtual and augmented reality projects may need lower polygon budgets while keeping enough detail for recognisable athletes, branded content and interactive presentation.
02
Pipeline fit after capture
A raw scan is not always ready for animation or real-time use. Teams often need retopology, texture handling and careful data handoff so the asset can move into rigging or engine prep.
What your team gets
Why teams commission body scans
01
Digital doubles
Create athlete likenesses for VFX, promotions or virtual scenes with high-resolution geometry and texture maps.
02
Avatar production
Build sports avatars from scanned reference rather than starting from a generic model or rough illustration.
03
On-location flexibility
Use a portable scanning setup when the subject cannot travel to the studio or the shoot schedule is fixed.
04
Downstream readiness
Receive scans that can be prepared for rigging, animation or real-time rendering with retopology support where needed.
Capabilities and deliverables
What we can deliver
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- 3D body scanning. Agree subject coverage and the downstream use of the captured detail.
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- 3D full body scanning. Agree subject coverage and the downstream use of the captured detail.
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- 3D face scanning. Identify the expressions and close-up detail required by the performance.
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- Photogrammetry capture. Agree subject coverage and the downstream use of the captured detail.
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- Digital doubles. Discuss the required result and production scope during the project briefing.
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- Avatar reference assets. Define the character’s role, appearance and intended interaction setting.
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- Retopology for raw scans. Agree subject coverage and the downstream use of the captured detail.
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- Studio and on-location sessions. Discuss the required result and production scope during the project briefing.
Production approach
Built for sports workflows
For sports productions, 3D body scanning is most useful when it is planned as part of a larger asset pipeline. That may mean creating a likeness for a footballer, recording an athlete for a virtual event, or capturing a face and full body for a character model that will later be animated.
Mimic’s Berlin studio offers controlled capture for consistent results, while the portable system allows us to work on location when travel or timing is the priority. If your brief includes AR, VR, metaverse use or another real-time environment, we can discuss the scan output in relation to polygon budgets, texture detail and the level of post-processing your team expects.
This service is best suited to productions that want recognisable likeness, controlled capture and dependable handoff data rather than a generic 3D model. If you are planning a player likeness, an athletic avatar, or a full-body reference asset, we can help define the scan scope around your delivery needs, lighting conditions and downstream software requirements.
Our sports and fitness experience includes motion capture for tennis games, scanning Premier League football players, and producing 3D assets for virtual and augmented reality concepts. We also support character creation where the brief calls for realistic identity, clothing detail and accurate proportions for digital environments.
Share the subject list, required coverage and intended use of the scans. Clothing, hair, reflective surfaces and the level of facial detail can affect preparation, so provide reference views and discuss the downstream modelling requirements before the session. For sports content, share references for the specific movement and equipment, and identify the angles needed to assess timing and body mechanics.
Explore our 3D Body Scanning services and Sports production.
Related production services: 3D Modeling for Sports · Character Rigging for Sports · 3D Body Scanning for Gaming.
How we work
How the scan session works
01
Brief and scope
We confirm whether you need a full body scan, face scan or both, and discuss how the asset will be used in sports content, avatars or digital doubles.
02
Capture setup
We prepare the studio or on-location scan session, selecting a setup that suits the timing, subject movement and required fidelity.
03
Data delivery and refinement
You receive scan data with the level of detail agreed for the project, and we can support retopology if the model needs animation-ready optimisation.
04
Handoff for production
We align the final output with your team’s next step, whether that is rigging, texturing, virtual production or real-time deployment.
Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions
Is 3D body scanning suitable for athletes who need to stay on schedule?
Yes. Sports projects often need a tightly managed capture window, and our portable system allows us to work in Berlin or on location. The practical scope is usually defined in advance so the session supports the planned production slot and the intended downstream use.
Can you scan only the face, or does it have to be the full body?
We can scan the face, the full body, or both. For athlete likeness and digital doubles, teams often want both because facial detail and body proportion serve different parts of the asset pipeline. The final choice depends on the character or content brief.
Is the scan ready for animation straight away?
Not always. If you already have a raw full-body scan, we can provide retopology to reduce polygon count while preserving the main form and detail. That helps when the asset needs to be animated, rigged or moved into a real-time workflow.
Can this support VR, AR or metaverse content?
Yes, provided the scan is planned around the limits of the target platform. The sports source specifically mentions virtual and augmented reality work, and that often means balancing fidelity with lower polygon ceilings and clear texture decisions for the final application.
Do you create the actual game or app backend?
No. This service covers scanning and related character production assets. It can supply the visual body or face data needed for an app, game or virtual experience, but any conversation system, platform build or software integration would sit with your development team.
What should we prepare before a scanning session?
We usually begin with the intended use, required body coverage, and whether the output needs retopology or real-time optimisation. From there, we can agree a practical capture plan that fits the subject, the schedule and the production pipeline.
Frequently asked questions