Our Creative Technologist, Jon Jones explores the changes we’ve seen in Augmented Reality (AR) technology, from our first to most recent and viral campaigns.

For 15 years, Grand Visual has been at the forefront of the digital OOH landscape. From the first time we ever used AR, for a Lynx campaign (2011), to the most recent work we did for Amazon (2019), it’s safe to say that we’ve had the opportunity to work on some pretty impressive AR executions.

With both feet firmly in a new decade, I’ve decided to take a look back at this journey with 2020 vision to predict what this year will bring – from tech innovation to best in class examples of AR in OOH.

The key technological change I’ve seen in AR technology is the improvement in the way that we automate it. For the Lynx campaign we did back in 2011, the AR process was entirely manual. Every single transition, vision mixing to the screen, and sending the resulting photo back to the user, each element was manual. This sort of process inherently doesn’t lend itself to any kind of longevity regarding activation times.

Fast forward to a campaign we did for Spider-Verse exactly seven years later and we were able to run the activation for over a month without any human interaction. This is in part down to the huge amount of improvement with the live graphics technologies that enable us to automatically apply visual effects to our camera feed.

Another development I’ve noticed is the scalability of which we’re able to deploy AR. Back in 2014, we worked on one of our most memorable AR campaigns of all time for Pepsi MAX. Still to this day, the campaign accounts for the majority of our website leads and is constantly shared on social media.

Back then, this use of AR in digital OOH was unique and only achievable on a small scale. However, with Snapchat lenses and filters launched the following year, a wider audience was introduced to the world of Augmented Reality. This technology is something that now exists in everyone’s back pockets and has become commonplace. Whilst it’s enjoyable to keep celebrating this award-winning campaign, it’s essential to keep looking towards the future and planning our next big project.

In 2020, when it comes to creative technology and AR executions, a key consideration is how to make these scalable and shareable experiences. Over the years we have seen inventory change in such a way that means Augmented Reality is no longer limited to a one-off stunt, and can be a more ingrained part of a campaign’s creative, like this campaign we did for O2 Goslings in 2017.

Keeping our finger on the pulse of the latest tech advances, 5G may bring quite a few benefits, provides us with a great opportunity to continue to push the boundaries of DOOH. Although, of course, it’s the creative idea behind any execution that brings success and not necessarily the most advanced technology.

This year we will keep on innovating and exploring the technology available to us, with a focus on Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML) and 5G. Augmented Reality is at the heart of some of our best interactive campaigns and we expect this to continue and evolve. Last decade was all about growing and introducing AR technology to the digital OOH landscape; we can’t wait to see what the next decade brings. 

 

Mo-Sys StarTracker
Jon Jones, Creative Technologist

You may be familiar with The Weather Channel’s immersive mixed reality depicting the effects of flooding caused by hurricanes, or perhaps appreciated the BBC’s use of Augmented Reality during their 2019 Wimbledon coverage. These effects were made possible by Mo-Sys’ StarTracker technology.

We were invited down to Mo-Sys’ studio and development centre recently to see their kit in action. It was certainly impressive to see a demonstration in real life and how the tech works behind-the-scenes.

Mo-Sys StarTracker

Reflective dots are attached to the studio ceiling and Mo-Sys’ StarTracker sensor calculates where in the studio the camera is – even when the camera moves. The data is then passed on to a computer that generates the Mixed Reality environment. This is where graphics can be put in front or behind the subject within the 3D environment in real-time.

The Weather Channel - Mo-Sys

Here, you can create anything from a photo realistic to a cartoon superhero world. The tech can use the latest in ray tracing rendering in the Unreal engine.

Imagine bringing Hollywood-grade CGI techniques and graphics to an OOH activation – experiences would be more immersive than ever before! The beauty of this tech is its ability to render graphics on the fly, rather than having to have them pre-rendered to make the experience. With this evolution we now have the ability to create activations where participants are able to interact within a 3D AR environment.

We worked with mixed reality on the Disney Infinity project, which used Chromatte and keying technology. Whilst this project was a huge success, imagine what we could have achieved with the technology that exists today. Being able to create, track & react with participants in the 3D environment offers activations like these a level of flexibility that was previously unobtainable.

Disney Infinity Grand Visual

Envision being placed in the same 3D space as, say a character from your favourite TV show, where you and the camera would be able to move around giving the appearance of them actually being there next to you. It’d be a great experience and takeaway video!

It’s awesome to see such advances in technology and the creative ways they are being applied, like with the Weather Channel. It makes this a very exciting space to be working in. We’re really looking forward to seeing how this will be used across the wider industry and in particular the creative opportunity tech like this brings for digital OOH.

our team

Sarah

How long have you been at GV for and what’s your role?
A bit over a year and a half and I’m a Senior Marketing Executive.

What’s your favourite GV campaign?
The Augmented Reality experience that we did Pepsi Max Unbelievable bus shelter, I remember reading about it when I lived in Australia and thinking it was so cool!

If you weren’t in the Marketing Team, would you rather be in the Creative Team or the Client Services Team?
Creative Team.

Would you rather have more time or more money?

More time to make more money.

Would you rather only be able to jump everywhere or only be able to walk on your hands?
Probably jump everywhere.

 

our team

Steve

How long have you been at GV for and what’s your role?
Just over three years – I’m a software developer.

What’s your favourite GV campaign?
Has to be the interactive game we did for Pets at Home ‘My Pet Pals’.

If you weren’t in the Tech team, would you rather be in the Production team or Operations?
Ops. I’d get to work with Gwen all day!

Would you rather be able to breathe underwater or fly through the air?
Flying definitely!

Would you rather become twice as strong when both of your fingers are stuck in your ears, or crawl twice as fast as you can run?
Stronger with my fingers in my ears. It would make leg day easier.

digital marketing apprenticeship grand visual

our team

Steve

How long have you been at GV for and what’s your role?
I’ve been at Grand Visual for just shy of a year, working as a Creative.

What’s your favourite GV campaign?
My favourite GV campaign is Sky Q Summons. Using Augmented Reality to create an interactive experience and allowing people to meet their favourite TV stars was awesome! Seeing the surprise on their faces really made all the hard work worth it!

If you weren’t in the Creative Team, would you rather be in the Finance Team or Operations?
I’d rather be in Operations … spreadsheets and I wouldn’t get along.

Would you rather hear the good news or the bad news first?
I’d rather hear the bad news first!

Would you rather live without the internet, or live without AC and heating?
I could live without AC and heating … watch me put four jumpers on as I find something to watch.

 

our team

Jackie

How long have you been at GV for and what’s your role?
I’ve been at GV for 11 years and I’m the Finance Manager – or anything no-one else wants to do!

What’s your favourite GV campaign?
The Augmented Reality experience that we did for Angels.

If you weren’t in the Finance team, would you rather be in the Production Team or the Tech Team?
The Tech Team.

Would you rather be completely invisible for one day, or be able to fly for one day?
I’d rather be able to fly.

Would you rather be able to control fire or water?
Water!

our team

Gwen

How long have you been at GV for and what’s your role?
I’ve been at GV for five years now and I am Head of People.

What’s your favourite GV campaign?
That’s an easy one! My favourite GV campaign is the Let The Memories Begin campaign that we did for Disney.

If you weren’t in the Operations, would you rather be in the Finance Team or the Tech Team?
If I wasn’t in Operations, I would rather be in the Tech Team as they are always building cool stuff for our campaigns.

Would you rather live in a place that is always cold or always hot?
I would rather live in a place that is always hot than cold.

Would you rather be able to breathe underwater or fly through the air?
I would prefer to breathe underwater than fly through the air.

 

our team

Ric

How long have you been at GV for and what’s your role?
I’ve been at GV for 6 years and I’m the Creative Director.

What’s your favourite GV campaign?
Probably the Augmented Reality campaign that we did for Doctor Strange as it had a load of awesome things going on in it.

If you weren’t in the Creative Team, would you rather be in Client Services or the Production Team?
That’s a difficult question. I think I’d rather be in Production rather than Client Services as I don’t think I’d enjoy communicating with clients on that side of things!

Would you rather be the first person to explore a planet or be the inventor of a drug that cures a deadly disease?
I have no interest in trying to discover new planets so I guess it would be curing a disease.

Would you rather be completely invisible for a day or be able to fly?
I think I would get up to terrible things if I was completely invisible for a day so I’d stick with flying for a day!

Grand Visual OOH

our team

Matt

How long have you been at GV for and what’s your role?
I have been at GV for just under 3 years. I am the Management Accountant, which means I report the monthly/yearly performance of the business. I also look after the day to day functions of Finance.

What’s your favourite GV campaign?
My favourite campaign would be the work that we did for the film, The Accountant. It’s nice to see a film show our profession in a good light. Even if there were not enough explosions to do us justice.

If you weren’t in the Finance Team, Would you rather be in Client Services or Operations?
Client Services defo! I love eating/drinking in new places and entertaining clients. That’s all there is to it right?

Would you rather be an amazing dancer or an amazing singer?
Singer, it’s where the ££££ is at!

Would you rather become twice as strong when both of your fingers are stuck in your ears, or crawl twice as fast as you can run?
Crawl twice as fast as I can run. I’m quite fast at running, so my crawl would be insane! Plus I’m sure my kids would love to jump on my back while I whizz around.

 

our team

Nadiya

How long have you been at GV for and what’s your role?
Almost 6 years! I’m the Production Director.

What’s your favourite GV campaign?
Our Augmented Reality campaign that we did for Pepsi Max Unbelievable bus shelter. It was truly a media first that opened so many doors for GV!

If you weren’t in the Production Team, Would you rather be in Operations or Client Services?
Client Services.

Would you rather be the first person to explore a planet or be the inventor of a drug that cures a deadly disease?
Invent the drug that cures a deadly disease.

Would you rather be completely invisible for one day or be able to fly for one day?
Be able to fly.

digital marketing apprenticeship grand visual

our team

Lisa

How long have you been with GV for and what’s your role?
I have been at GV for just over 4 years and I am the Head of Marketing.

What’s your favourite GV campaign?
My favourite GV campaign would probably be the Angels campaign which is a really old one – but was the first campaign that made me aware of who Grand Visual was.

If you weren’t in Marketing, would you rather be in Tech or Finance?
FINANCE!

Would you rather control Space or Time?
Mmmmm… time!

Would you rather hear the good news or the bad news first?
The bad news.

 

our team

Ben P.

How long have you been with GV for and what’s your role?
I’ve been at GV for 2 and a half years and my current role is Client Services Director.

What’s your favourite GV campaign?
My favourite GV campaign is our recent campaign for SONY for Spider-Verse. It’s an awesome campaign that basically gave people the opportunity to enter into The Spider-Verse.

If you weren’t in Client Services, would you rather be in Creative or Production?
Definitely Creative.

Would you rather control Space or Time?
Time.

Would you rather be able to breathe underwater or fly through the air?
Definitely fly.

Grand Visual Team

Our Team

JJ

How long have you been at GV for and what’s your role?
I’ve been at Grand Visual for seven years now, and I’m a Creative Technologist which means that I bridge together the Creative and Technical departments.

What’s your favourite GV campaign?
I’d say it would be Disney Shadows, which was quite a fun project to work on. It was very different to what we usually do… and it got a great reception online!

If you weren’t in Tech would you rather be in Production or Creative?
I think I’d definitely rather be in Creative… it’s already part of a role that I work at the moment so I think that would come most natural to me.

Would you rather travel a hundred years into the future or a hundred years into the past?
I think into the future… it would just be fun to see how far everything has come and whether we’ve actually managed to crack the hologram from Back To The Future.

Would you rather it be hot all of the time or cold all of the time?
I think cold all of the time because it’s easier to warm up than cool down.

 

our team

Collins

How long have you been at GV for and what’s your role?
I’ve been at GV for four and a half years and I’m a technician.

What’s your favourite GV campaign?
I’d have to say… Doctor Strange!

If you weren’t in Tech would you rather be in client services or marketing?
Oh, marketing… definitely!

Would you rather be completely invisible for one day or be able to fly?
Fly… obviously!

Would you rather give up bathing for a month or give up the internet for a month?
Internet!

Technology Grand Visual Digital OOH
Welcome to our September instalment of Things We Love. A little something we hope will help you to get to know us at GV a little better. Every month we’re sharing things we’ve worked on and loved, new technology we’ve been looking at which could be applied to digital OOH, all things creative or something we’re just really geeking out on.

Buffalo Bill Gates Technology

Buffalo Bill Gates – PETE – MGFX DESIGNER

“Artist Kalle Mattsson, aka Buffalo Bill Gates, creates celebrity portrait mash-ups of famous faces with other celebrity identities/fictional entities to create offbeat hybrid personalities. We commonly see this ‘meme’ type artwork primarily online, however, it is great to see that Kalle Mattsson has an upcoming print exhibition showcasing his many wacky creations.”

Mixed Reality Graphic For The Weather Channel – ADAM – MGFX DESIGNER

“The Weather Channel utilised mixed reality while reporting on the power and danger of Hurricane Florence. The graphics showed flood waters rising well above the meteorologist’s heads, with howling winds and cars floating on the surface of the water. The technology is incredibly effective, and I’m keen to see the evolution of mixed reality and how that can be translated to digital signage and beyond.”

Interactive display in AR – STEVE – CREATIVE

“Apples ARKit has enabled many software developers and hobbyists to push Augmented Reality technology further, producing ideas and concepts that could change the way we interact with products, and advertisements. AR IRL (in real life) is a proof of concept which shows that users can interact with Augmented Reality elements onscreen in order to have an impact on physical objects. This example shows a user interacting with an AR keypad lock which unlocks a physical box. It’s an exciting thought to be able to interact with some kind of puzzle on your phone to unlock a digital vending machine DOOH activation.”

Cryptocurrency digital OOH

Jackson Palmer – FREDDIE – DEVELOPER

“As a tech guy, I find cryptocurrency interesting from the development perspective and recently I’ve been enjoying Jackson Palmer on YouTube. He’s great at explaining the technicalities of cryptocurrencies and stays clear of the trading side of things. For instance, his latest episode outlines what Dapps are (decentralised applications – apps run by many users rather than a company) and why no one is using them. It’s interesting if you want to get a critical look at the current state of cryptocurrency technologies and what the future is likely to hold.”

 

The week before Cannes your inbox lights up, brimming with emails from long-lost clients, agency friends and Cannes comrades asking if you’re going to the Cote d’Azur next week. Half the industry is buzzing in anticipation, the other half are planning their week of World Cup viewing. For me this year, Cannes was a chance to join my fellow founding members of the Digital Future Council as we strategise over the future of our respective creative and media worlds. To catch up with a number of industry partners, clients, agencies and, well, let’s face it… mates. It’s not all work.

The Digital Future Council had a villa a short walk from the Croisette and the founding members had sessions on Monday and Tuesday. Sessions centred on Blockchain technology and how it may affect the creative and media worlds. Much more to come on this (watch this space). The event was well attended and prompted a lively debate about technology and the future. I spoke with people from varying industries all tasked with understanding new tech roles for their business. It is clear the tech players are beginning to own Cannes. Facebook, Snap, Twitter, Google, Pinterest, Spotify all have prominent spots along La Croisette beachfront. Plenty more had their yachts moored up for intimate chats with the right person. But it’s clear the ad tech world is viewing Cannes with big cow eyes. Rubicon, Trade Desk and MediaMath booked out some nice spaces to party into the night, while the Media Agencies take their usual spots at large hotels. It definitely feels like the tech players and publishers are splashing the cash to get in on the action.

Despite Lion’s creative heritage and emphasis on being creative, this year’s festival was dominated by technology. Augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), blockchain, Artificial Intelligence and printing technology, and how these technological advancements are about to change the face of the creative and media worlds. With well publicised decreased agency presence, the void was filled by digital firms shouting about their tech-based offerings. As well as entertaining the creative community nightly with live music, beaches and of course cocktails, Minuty and Lager beer on tap (they know us so well.) So much entertainment was on offer that chats at each beach party invariably moved quickly on to ’where we going next?’ or ’did you see The Killers last night?’ or ’are you going to watch Duran Duran later?’ (incidentally overheard on the Croisette from a young Lion ’I think my mum saw Duran Duran once’ – man I feel old.)

So are the awards a sideshow to all of this? I don’t think so. The two mutually exist. While there were several peers I spoke to that by Thursday hadn’t even picked up their delegate pass, there were quite a few discussions about shortlists and awards from that night or the next. I was really pleased to see the hard work I put in with the Cannes Lions Outdoor team come to life on the awards side of things. For too long I’ve written about how the categorisation of Outdoor has almost excluded Digital. It’s now fully integrated into the Outdoor category, though judging by the shortlists and entries it’ll take a few years to bed in on both agency and judging sides. Don’t get me wrong, there were some very worthy winners, but there were also again some technically suspect entries with poor categorisations.

In amongst everything were some real flashes of brilliance, and a real stand out I thought, was McCann London’s, XBOX Dynamic Campaign Outdoor win. A very smart and dynamic way to promote a product they were not allowed to talk about. Outside of that, it was great to see our partner Adam and Eve do well at Lions, especially for the great Project 84 campaign, but also in reclaiming the coveted agency of the year award.

Tech tech tech. This platform. The whole thing is pointless without effective creative, storytelling and crafting. So the question is: With all this technology, from sponsors, platforms, publishers, media owners, tech providers and future thinkers are we ruining the ’festival of creativity’?

I cannot see it changing anytime soon. Creative and Media are a huge business. And Tech knows it. Tech is rich. Tech is powerful. Tech can woo your client on the yacht while you’re watching The Killers.

We are stood at the very beginning of a transformation of the media and creative worlds in terms of digitisation and technologification. Predictive analytics and artificial intelligence are set to change the way we buy, distribute and attribute campaign work at scale. Smarter integrated campaigns, with better results for clients. Transparent in their process through the implementation of blockchain technology throughout the entire campaign. There is still a race to be the first. I feel there should be more pressure on collectively being ’the best’ as industries, working collaboratively to build a brighter technological future so that smarter creative can make the whole thing work.

Daniel Dawson, CCTO Grand Visual