Core Viewpoint - The article discusses a new method called V2M4 developed by a research team from KAUST, which enables the direct generation of usable 4D mesh animations from monocular video, significantly improving the efficiency and usability of animation and game content generation [1][6]. Summary by Sections Method Overview - V2M4 constructs a systematic multi-stage process that includes camera trajectory recovery, appearance optimization, topology unification, and texture synthesis, allowing videos to be transformed into models quickly [2][6]. Performance Metrics - The generated appearance and structure are highly restored, with an average processing time of about 60 seconds per frame, which is significantly faster than existing methods. It also supports "long videos," performing well even on videos with a duration of 300 frames [4][20]. Challenges in Video to Animation Conversion - Traditionally, converting a video into continuous animated mesh assets has been a long-standing challenge in visual computing, requiring high-cost methods like multi-camera setups and motion capture. Implicit methods like NeRF can replicate appearance but struggle to output topologically consistent explicit meshes [4][5]. Camera Trajectory Recovery - V2M4 employs a three-stage camera estimation strategy to reconstruct the camera perspective for each video frame, converting "camera motion" into "mesh motion" to accurately model dynamic scenes [10][11]. Appearance Consistency Optimization - To address appearance discrepancies, V2M4 utilizes a strategy from image editing called null text optimization to fine-tune the conditional embeddings of the generation network, enhancing the visual fidelity of the generated meshes [13][15]. Topology Unification - V2M4 introduces a frame-by-frame registration and topology unification mechanism, ensuring that all frames maintain a consistent topology, which is crucial for subsequent texture generation and temporal interpolation [16]. Texture Consistency Optimization - A shared global texture map is constructed for all frames to eliminate flickering and discontinuities, ensuring a smooth visual experience throughout the animation [17]. Animation Export - The method includes time interpolation and structural encapsulation of the generated mesh sequences, resulting in a smooth animation sequence that can be exported as a GLTF-compliant file for use in mainstream graphics and game engines [18]. Performance Validation - V2M4's performance is evaluated on challenging video data, demonstrating comprehensive advantages in reconstruction quality, operational efficiency, and generalization capabilities [19][20]. Visual Comparison - The visual results show that V2M4 generates meshes with superior rendering details, normal structures, and inter-frame consistency, achieving high fidelity and stable generation of continuous animations [21].