For example, in the above image, underwater video is projected onto the walls to create a certain atmosphere. See how it covers the entire wall, top to bottom? It could be a discombobulating experience! This kind of video mapping is pretty basic, but it can be very effective.
This image displays video mapping onto buildings, which is more complicated than just a flat wall. The software has to map out the edges and shape of the building in order to project over it, making it look like this building is sagging.
Some artists have taken video mapping to a larger scale. This location is the Carrieres des Lumieres (Quarry of Lights) in France, where a creative team has turned an abandoned quarry into a multi sensory show with projected images set to music. (Read a detailed post about this particular show here).
The previous images are all examples of performative mapping: that is, the projected images are the entire show. But what happens when people perform WITH this technology?
I love this performance. To me, it not only expands the creativity of the dancers, choreographers, and video projectionists, but it also reanimates live performance. Let's be honest, in an era where the special effects in our movies we watch could make dinosaurs blow each other up in space, I think that live performance has dropped in popularity. (That wasn't a specific movie scene, but I'm sure it's possible to create with CGI). People's attention spans are wavering with every new generation, and the act of watching an artist perform live-- be it music, dance, or theatre-- should not be forgotten. Ever. That's why I love the marriage of humanity and technology, it opens up new possibilities.
This video is so cool. It also requires the use of smart projectors, because once the face is mapped with tracking points and such, the camera also has to continuously read where they are moving to. The technology for this still a little slow-- note that the models kept their movements slow and deliberate, so that the camera could follow them. However, this "face hacking" is still incredibly fascinating to watch! It could be used in movies in the future... Perhaps instead of hours of makeup to transform their figures, all it takes is a few tracking points and a video projector. Personally, I thought that this use could be used in live theatre! That would be another example of adding an exciting flair to live performance.
So, video projection mapping is a multi-faceted technology that has uses in all kinds of entertainment. Whether it's being used for atmospheric walls at a dance party, to change the face of a building, or to change the face of a human being, this technology is already being used in a variety of ways. What could you make with video mapping technology?
