Brief:
Develop a digital human using motion capture technology, capable of delivering both live and pre-recorded performances as a music artist. 

Approach:
We wanted to make him relatable, being already digital we thought it would be best that he looks as normal and relatable as possible. We did not want to go photorealistic with his face because we wanted to stay away from the uncanny valley, where the closer you get to realism regarding the human face, the stranger it looks to the observer. At the same time we wanted realistic looking skin and textures with material characteristics such as sub surface scattering, giving the character a high quality look. 

Although we wanted the character to be relatable we still wanted to take full advantage of the fact that he is a digital human, and so he also has super powers which unlock when he enters “flow state”. At the same time embracing the fact that he is digital and will sometimes glitch out, we decided to incorporate that into his behaviour as a known defect, as we humans also have, but rather embracing it and turning it into something cool. 

Execution:
Creative Director: Michael Mircea
Character concept sketch artist: Catalin Lartist
Character modelling and texturing: Sandeep VS
Character rig: Emilian (3dTech-Art)
Research and development of motion capture solutions: Michael Mircea
Implementation and testing of technology: Michael Mircea
Materials/ Shaders & Blueprints in Unreal Engine: Emilian (3dTech-Art)

Client:
Global Records