Can you picture yourself playing guitar with Steve Vai? Or just picturing yourself right next to the famous artist? Probably not. Still, thanks to the work by Eindhoven-based Dutch Rose Media’s 4DR Studios, it has become possible to do exactly that. It’s called volumetric video, and it enables any user to be part of a holographic experience leading to a collaborative fan-artist performance.
This is Steve Vai’s plan: the video content he already captured of his performance of ‘Zeus In Chains’ will be combined with fan-generated imagery from across the globe to deliver a collaborative new video. “The primary intent of this undertaking is to explore new ways to experience songs and, more broadly, tie an immersive fan experience into the realm of artist performances”, Vai explains. “This is the initial step tied to exploring the virtual world in augmented reality via co-creating this video with the fans.”
Using volumetric video, the app creates a hyper-realistic 3D model of Steve Vai, which can then be projected into the real world through Augmented Reality (AR). This cutting-edge volumetric video was captured at the 4DR Studios, employing the 4D Views technology and its 48 cameras. “At 4DR Studios, we believe that authentic visual representations of people are essential for the virtual worlds we create”, says creative director Natasja Paulssen. “Volumetric video creates 3D avatars of real people, capturing genuine emotions, bringing soul to the digital realm. Using our technology to capture Steve is the ultimate proof of this. Steve is a world-renowned artist and innovator who is always in front of trends and in this case, the perfect collaborator.”
Walk around the image
4DR Studios developed an app to project the image of the performing artist through the viewer’s phone. The app allows users to select a specific location and make Steve Vai part of their environment. They can walk around the image and watch the performance from all angles. “And, if of interest, you can even film yourself together with me”, Vai adds.
Once enough fan-generated content is received, Vai wants to integrate that content into the rest of the video. “This app allows the user to visually capture me performing Zeus in Chains in any environment through their phone. I put together some of these clips for the 1st 60 seconds of ‘Zeus in Chains,’ but since I love performing all around the world, I encourage folks to download this app and create some crazy content of me performing at a historical location near you, or in a hilarious situation, and upload your video to a platform of your choice to help me finish this video.”
Using the hashtag #VaiEverywhere, the artist aims to gather all the content created by his fans.
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