Imaginary Pictures is a new service to ‘beam’ people and products anywhere in the world. Becoming known as ‘holoportation’, the technology allows high-quality 3D models to be transmitted anywhere in real-time, using an innovation developed by Los Angeles technology company Proto.
Based in London and Manchester, with capability across the UK and Ireland, Imaginary Pictures provides a complete end-to-end service from capture to broadcast. The holograms can be displayed as a full-sized box similar to a telephone box, known as the Proto Epic, or a smaller desktop box, the Proto M. As well as used for live interactive communications, the Proto devices can show pre-recorded presentations and can display realistic 3D images of products.
Imaginary Pictures has already used the technology to create live broadcasts. These included a live demonstration of global connectivity using 5G in association with Virgin Media O2, and an art and jewellery auction to Saudi Arabia beamed from London with live holograms of two artists at work.
“Video conferencing and 3D imaging have been around a while now but beamed holograms of people was something we only imagined; something we’d only seen in science fiction films,“ says Kevin Zemrowsky, Technical Director, Imaginary Pictures. “Well, now it is here and working Proto we’ve developed a complete production solution to make holoportation accessible to everyone.”
Improving digital communication bandwidth such as high-speed broadband and 5G networks has been the game-changer for the technology and Imaginary Pictures believes the potential market is huge. Already taking off in the US it has been used at major sporting events, exhibitions and conferences and in the UK.
“We’ve all got used to making video calls but the interaction isn’t that life-like. Proto’s technology bridges between the physical and the virtual; with an all-body 3D image, Holoportation makes it feel that the person is there and it opens up a whole new world where people can be beamed into live events.”
