As expected, Dr. Dre did indeed ressurect RIP rapper Tupac Shakur last night at Coachella. This video shows him performing "Hail Mary," not "California Love," as I reported yesterday.
In terms of technical backstory, The Verge misreported MPC as the SFX studio. I have made the correction here, but the rest of their description seems sound, the "video was composed by James Cameron's Venice, CA, SFX company MPC Digital Domain using a mixture of live footage, wire-framing, and CGI. This was then fed into Musion's holographic technology, which projects the image onto a special foil. The foil is based on principles set out in the old magician's illusion Pepper's Ghost, which trick audiences into thinking they're viewing a person or object rather than a simple reflection. By using a lightweight foil which mimics the properties of semi-transparent glass, Musion is able to extend the concept's scale without limiting the efficacy of the illusion."
Businessweek interviewed Digital Domain's chief creative officer Ed Ulbrich. With living artists thay are able to take measurements before turning them into holograms, but "we don’t have the benefit of Tupac to help us inform and guide the performance of him," says Ulrich. The Tupac image was made from video footage and photos. "And quite honestly, it was Dre and Snoop who had to guide us. He is their friend and they know him," says Ulbrich.
The crowds at Coachella were apparently wowed, but The Verge goes on to describe the glitches in the illusion, "The projection on stage often moves while the figure is stationary, leading to a ‘moonwalking’ effect (how long before we see a Michael Jackson performance recreated in this way?). There are also some issues with lighting and the movement of the specter in general, which often appears to be little more than CGI."
Apparently, they put words in Tupac's mouth, "what the f--- is up, Coachella." Some product placements are better left to the living!
UPDATE: The full press release from Digital Domain (with my apologies):
VENICE, California. (April 16, 2012) – During their sold-out set at the Coachella Valley Music Festival, headliners Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg blew the minds of fans when they were joined onstage by 2Pac via a holographic projection. This incredibly realistic likeness of 2Pac was created by Hollywood powerhouse Digital Domain, and reunited the legends in an exclusive, original performance of “Hail Mary” and “2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted.”
“Virtual” 2Pac is the vision of Dr. Dre, who, with Philip Atwell of Geronimo Productions and Dylan Brown of The Yard Entertainment, worked with Digital Domain to create this exclusive performance for fans. Digital Domain created the Academy AwardÒ-winning CG likeness of Brad Pitt for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and of Jeff Bridges for TRON: Legacy, Kevin Bacon for X-Men: First Class, Rooney Mara for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and more.
UPDATE: The Wall Street Journal reports that there are plans in the works to take the 2Pac hologram on tour with Dr. Dre and a posse of other rappers. This is starting to sound like a macabre twist on an oldies show!
