It’s hard not to love video mapping, especially if you’ve seen a show up close and personal. Inanimate objects like an old church, a car or even a shoebox seem to come to life. You can project on people’s faces too with brilliant effects if done right. The models don’t have to budge though, otherwise the whole representation is ruined. Artists Paul Lacroix and Nobumichi Asai have used video mapping with a twist by adding real-time tracking. In doing so, they layered a virtual mask atop of a Japanese model’s face that’s always on despite her movements. It all looks ethereal and people might not believe it was all projected live.
Project Omote (Japanese for mask) is a first of its kind concept, and like anything novel there were some technical challenges the makeup artists and motion graphic designers had to overcome. Using a mix of sensors, data processing algorithms, custom CG renderings and multiple projectors, the team eventually got the timing just right so the ‘mask’ always followed the model’s face.
