Chase Dies in Space didn’t rack up millions of views by being just another animated educational show. It stood out by pushing the limits of sci-fi storytelling and motion capture animation.

One minute, our accident-prone hero Chase is struggling to dodge a barrage of flying rocks on an alien planet- the next, one slams into his helmet, cracks it open like an egg, and sends him gasping into the planet’s toxic atmosphere. He stumbles, flails, and falls backward, his face frozen in a perfect mix of panic and regret. Just another day for Chase.

It’s the kind of over-the-top mayhem our audience comes to the show for, but animating this chaos isn’t as easy as it looks. We needed Chase’s body to react naturally as he dodged incoming rocks, his hands to flinch in self-defense, his face to register pure panic, and his movements to sell the impact-  all at once. Manually animating each of those elements frame by frame would have taken weeks.

Instead, we strapped on Rokoko’s SmartSuit Pro 2, SmartGloves, and Face Capture, acted it out, and let the motion capture do the hard work. In a single take, we captured Chase’s entire flailing, twitching, crash-landing performance: body, hands, and face, all in real-time.

We recorded all that in a single take, thanks to Rokoko’s mocap tools. If you’re curious, Rokoko’s offering 40% off their indie bundle right now.

The result? A cinematic, fluid animation that felt more natural and hilarious, with none of the stiff, robotic movements that can make action sequences feel unnatural. And since we could record full-body performances in minutes instead of spending days manually tweaking keyframes, we had more time to focus on the fun part: dreaming up even wilder ways for Chase to meet his untimely demise.

But why did we go this route? And how did Rokoko’s motion capture help us create a Hollywood-style animated series on a YouTube budget with an affordable, high-quality motion capture solution built for indie animators and filmmakers?

Let’s take a deeper look.

The Challenge: Bringing Sci-Fi to Life Without a Hollywood Budget

When we set out to create Chase Dies in Space, we knew we wanted it to feel different from the standard YouTube animation. We didn’t just want characters that moved—we wanted them to act. We wanted action scenes that felt visceral, dialogue that felt natural, and body language that enhanced the storytelling. The problem?

• Hand-animating every movement is time-consuming.
• Traditional animation teams are expensive.
• We wanted the ability to iterate quickly and experiment with shots.

This is where motion capture became a game-changer. Want to see it in action? This episode, made using Rokoko’s tools, racked up over 14 million views—proving just how effective this technology can be for high-quality animation on a YouTube budget.

You don’t need a massive studio to achieve this level of animation—here’s how Rokoko makes it easy.

How Rokoko’s Motion Capture Suits Transformed Our Production

Instead of spending hours manually animating every frame, we used Rokoko’s SmartSuit Pro II, Smart Gloves, and Face Capture to record real human performances and apply them directly to our characters.

This gave us:

• More realistic movements – Instead of stiff animations, our characters moved like real people.
• Faster animation workflow – We could shoot a scene in minutes instead of hours.
• More creative freedom – If a scene didn’t feel right, we could re-record new motion quickly.

For example, one of our favorite sequences, Chase running face-first into a pole, would have been a nightmare to animate traditionally. With Rokoko, we acted out the movements and applied them to our digital characters in real time.

Here’s a before-and-after look at how motion capture made this possible:

Why Motion Capture is a Game-Changer for Indie Creators

Whether you’re a filmmaker, game developer, or animator, motion capture should make your work easier, not more complicated. That’s exactly why Rokoko’s mocap tools are built for indie creators: fast, intuitive, and completely portable.

• Filmmakers – Set up anywhere and start capturing performances in minutes—no cameras, no dedicated tracking space required. Take your laptop and mocap suit on location and be ready to record instantly, even outdoors.
• Game Developers – Stream motion data live into your game engine with Rokoko’s native plugins. No more guesswork: just plug in and start animating.
• Animators – Full-performance capture in real-time: body, hands, and face- all in one take. With Rokoko, your ideas are always just minutes away from becoming reality.

With the fastest and most intuitive setup on the market, Rokoko lets you spend less time on technical headaches and more time creating, without breaking the bank.

 

But What About AI Motion Capture Tools?

Yes, AI mocap is here, and it’s tempting. These tools promise motion capture from a simple video, and they can be cheaper. But when you’re serious about animation quality, AI tools still come up short.

Here’s why we stuck with Rokoko, and why it continues to outperform:

• Full-performance capture, not just body motion – Most AI mocap tools only track basic body movement. Rokoko’s SmartSuit Pro II captures precise full-body animation, plus hands, fingers, and facial expressions
• Real-time recording and previewing – With Rokoko, we can record, see the animation on our characters instantly, and re-shoot if something looks off. No switching software. No waiting. AI tools, on the other hand, often take up to 20 minutes just to process a take
• Native integration  – Rokoko streams motion data directly into Unreal, Blender, Unity, Maya, and more, in real time. No file wrangling, no import/export headaches- just streamlined creation. AI tools usually require exporting files, converting formats, and jumping through hoops just to test a take.
• Multi-character support – With Rokoko, you can record multiple characters in the same scene and have them interact with one another.

In short, AI tools are improving; but if you’re after speed, precision, and real-time creative control, nothing beats the performance, flexibility, and integration of Rokoko’s mocap system. That’s why Chase Dies in Space didn’t settle for “good enough.”

 

If you’re an indie creator looking to add more realism, efficiency, and creativity to your work, now’s the perfect time- Rokoko is offering 40% off a motion capture bundle just for indie creators!

Get Rokoko here: https://bit.ly/indie-mocap-bundle

For an extra 5% off your order, use promo code: RKK_WHAT.

Want to go even deeper?
Check out this quick behind-the-scenes Short where we show how we captured one of Chase’s most chaotic moments using the Rokoko suit.