SAN BERNARDINO, CA — AV Concepts, which helped bring Tupac Shakur back as a holographic illusion at Coachella 2012, is supporting the virtual performances of other late rappers for the 2013 Rock the Bells series of hip-hop shows this fall, including performing likenesses of Eazy-E and Ol’ Dirty Baster (ODB) for shows here (San Manuel Amphitheatre, Sept. 7-8), in San Francisco (Shoreline Amphitheatre, Sept. 14-15).
More details from AV Concepts (www.avconcepts.com):
[UPDATE, Sept. 27, 2013: Shows planned for Washington DC (RFK Stadium Festival Grounds, Sept. 28-29) and New York (Meadowlands Race Track, Oct. 4-5) were canceled. -ed]
AV Concepts, the nation’s leading holographic and immersive technology provider, partnered with Guerilla Union and Play Gig-IT to bring to life original virtual performances by Eazy-E and Ol’ Dirty Bastard (ODB) at Rock the Bells 2013. The holographic performances made their first appearance at the two-day concert in Los Angeles on Sept. 7 and 8, and will appear at the festival series’ additional shows in San Francisco, Washington D.C. and New York.
Converging creativity and technology, AV Concepts designed and executed the holographic-appearing performances and collaborated with Play Gig-IT on the creative content. AV Concepts brought to the project its in-depth expertise and advanced filming processes to produce the three-dimensional, life-size illusions.
“As the only company in the world experienced in creating outdoor holographic projections in uncontrolled environments, our veteran creative and technical teams jumped at the opportunity to expand that expertise and execute holographic performances of this magnitude and scale,” said Nick Smith, president of AV Concepts. “The first show was an incredible experience for the audience and for us, and we’re looking forward to repeat performances.”
The illusions were created by leveraging AV Concepts’ expertise in the use of specialized holographic foil, lighting effects and the company’s proprietary Liquid Scenicsm projection mapping media server. The server takes completely uncompressed imagery and uses multiple high brightness projectors that integrate seamlessly to create very powerful, life-like performances. The AV Concepts team custom designed the entire set-up to be deployed within one minute on the outdoor stage. The virtual performances were executed flawlessly, energizing thousands of fans who immediately pulled out their phones to capture history in the making.
Chang Weisberg, Guerilla Union president and Rock the Bells founder, spearheaded the performance initiative. Partner Play Gig-IT, the largest music game in history, focused on the live performance animation, an area the company is extremely proficient in having already created over seventy avatars for their recently launched Facebook gaming platform.
AV Concepts is well-known for their groundbreaking execution of Tupac Shakur as a holographic illusion at Coachella 2012. The company’s portfolio crosses a broad variety of industries, including sports, entertainment, corporate events and meetings. The company has a 25-year track record of delivering superior value and client satisfaction through consultative design in audiovisual, lighting, projection, creative and digital display solutions, among many more services.
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