Real Science teamed up with MIT CSAIL to explore the latest in robot dog technology, showcasing how the Unitree Go1 and B1 models are evolving from simple remote-controlled machines into autonomous AI-powered robots.
We only had one day of access to film at MIT CSAIL, and the researchers had programmed specific movements—trots, pronks, bounds, runs, walks, and unconstrained gaits. So I had to get creative with the footage we captured and recreate those maneuvers using a mix of 3D and 2D animation.
Originally, all the robotic animations were meant to be done in 3D, but with tight deadlines looming, I came up with a workaround: I used cutouts of the 3D model, rendered them in 4K, then rigged and animated everything in After Effects. Since render times weren't an issue with this approach, I could quickly animate the robot dog performing all its various gaits and get the video done on time!
