The Volumetric Future: Coldplay x BTS on The Voice

The revolutionary live experience featured Coldplay performing in person alongside the BTS holograms from the award-winning music video. This is a major milestone for volumetric in broadcast, showcasing the technology’s suitability for prime time performances, and the ability to reuse assets across multiple applications.

Initial discussions for the project began in August 2021 between Coldplay, Dimension, and All of it Now (AOIN), exploring ideas around how to use real-time AR to bring the BTS band members on stage with Coldplay in a situation where physical travel was not possible.

From there, conversations pivoted to finding a broadcast opportunity where all teams would have sufficient time, access, and support to execute the project. The Voice was the perfect platform for this showpiece, due to the experience of the existing production team, as well as the studio environment and infrastructure.

The creative pipeline involved reviews and discussions with both the Coldplay and Dimension teams. The volumetric capture assets of BTS with holographic VFX treatment were provided by Dimension, with additional visual effects created by the Dimension and AOIN teams.

The result was a thrilling performance to launch the finale of The Voice on primetime TV (to an audience of more than 8 million viewers!), and an opportunity for the Coldplay creative team to extend the life of the 3D assets from the “My Universe” music video beyond their initial use. It also sets an exciting precedent for use in both mixed reality and metaverse applications.