While SXSW is known for some pretty spectacular musical performances, this recent outing by Japanese pop trio Perfume is not only one of the most memorable, but it could be in contention for the coolest thing we’ve seen this year so far.
This performance by Japanese pop trio Perfume just brought live shows into the 21st Century, light years ahead of anything else you can think of. You know Flying Lotus’ extravagant Layer 3 audiovisual spectacles? Yeah, this is better than that.
As Wired reports, the performance is a collaboration between Mikiko, of the dance group Elevenplay, who was responsible for the stage show, visuals, and choreography, and Kaoru Sugano, the famed creative director of the Japanese ad company Dentsu.
Meanwhile, all the technical aspects were overseen by Daito Manabe of the cutting edge design crew Rhizomatiks. This crack team utilised a small army of designers, engineers, and artists to bring the performance to life.
Readers can check out the clip below, but we warn you, it will take a few viewings before you’re able to figure out just what the hell is going on. And as you watch, remember, the clip was filmed in real time – nothing was done in post-production.
According to Manabe, work began with preproduction, which included an elaborate 3D scan of the venue and another of Perfume running through their performance. However, the real magic was all on the fly.
During the performance, a dynamic projection mapping system cast visuals onto the semi-translucent screens in front of the trio, while motion capture allowed the position of the projections to be calibrated automatically moment by moment.
The cameras filming the performance were also watched by a motion capture system, each fitted with a marker allowing the system to track the camera’s position and orientation in space. This is how the seamless morphing between perspectives was achieved.
