Michael Jackson To Unleash World Premiere Experience At Billboard Music Awards

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I have been reading the comments and I guess we can all agree on one thing that the performance in the end was still awesome. I agree with Qbee, the face of CGI generated Michael Jackson was no where near the real MJ. Now when it comes to a solution to that well I believe there IS technology that can improve the features on MJ's face. Am not an animator. But I am a visual effects enthusiast and love watching special effects and animated movies. And I have imagined innumerable number of times a virtual MJ. That is why my expectations were sky high seeing that the visual effects technology today has come to the point that ANYTHING is possible (yes, including creating a virtual MJ). What I have learnt from watching Dreamworks and Pixars "making-of" documentaries is that a lot of time is devoted to the character's mannerisms and face. They have to have so much character that the audience can immediately connect with them. With the MJ hologram, the connecting factor was his dancing but what failed to deliver was his face which doesn't seem to have been worked upon much. Now, I actually have a software which captures a person's face and superimposes it on an animated body. The result is mechanical, the body does everything but the face is just dead. The solution for the face is performance capture. This was notably used for the Na'vi in "Avatar", "Golem" in "LOTR", "Caesar" in "Planet of the Apes" and in a LOT of animated movies. They install a video camera in front of the person's face and then use that information of facial movements on the character they have to animate. The result is highly realistic.

6a0120a6b2c140970c013480ec1366970c-pi


Now, with MJ they would have to make do with his footages, use it to study his facial expressions, mannerisms. This needs a LOT of time. Animators spend months, even years to learn things so that they could replicate it properly. In 6 months this is what you get. I am guessing they hardly studied MJ much but depended on the choreographers to help with the movement. And as this was a projection on screen and meant for a live performance, they didn't devote time on his face because largely the audience would be watching from AFAR. Although I am still at a loss on his dance. Motion capture was used on MJ in "Ghosts". I wonder if they used all that in this performance especially on the "MOONWALK".

gbgfrvd.gif
 
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STOP BLAMING LA REID! He did not say anything about Slave To The Rhythm unreleased footage. Some unknown bullshit journalist said that and that spread around. That footage DOES NOT EXIST! And no one EVER said that it exist. NO ONE! Nothing official was ever said. Don't believe everything you read in the newspapers or on the internet.

Also they used Dangerous era Michael because Slave is Dangerous era song!
 

Wow, other and better and a lot closer camera angels. And you can see MJ and the "stage" (which is nicely done) better, at the end MJ changes back into the "painting" which is a nice touch imo. The "wave effect" in the beginning is also gone.
 
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This opens the door to whatever the Estate wants. Make MJ promote things in a commercial on TV? Done. Make MJ go on tour and perform songs he never really liked? Done. Make MJ do whatever they want because they can? Why not. They've got the technology and now unfortunately they've got the praise.

Drama queens

Why do you think MJ left his Estate in the hands of these people? Because he wanted them to hide and lock everything away? I love hearing new songs from MJ and seeing him at the top of the charts, all over the world, again.

Thanks God some of you people are not in charge - we'd never discover anything new.
 
It's odd. This whole performance was far from perfect, I need no explain... and yet I find myself often rewatching that part when the spotlight goes on him. I somehow actually enjoy the performance overall.

I noticed MJ looks better when it goes dark and he's not on the bright backdrop. Once he's dancing in front of the dark backdrop, he looks better, more realistic. Probably explains why Tupac was consistently realistic looking - he was always in the dark.

I'm happy the public are responding well :)
 
Ummm those moves are good but it just shouts imposonator it can't be anything else ? apart from animation and if it's animation then that is impressive.

It's funny when there talking about it on the news and they are showing the performance but then after show the real MJ kicking off TWYMMF video lol chalk & cheese!!!!!
 
Wow, other and better and a lot closer camera angels. And you can see MJ and the "stage" (which is nicely done) better, at the end MJ changes back into the "painting" which is a nice touch imo. The "wave effect" in the beginning is also gone.


Fantastic promotion, for the album and MJ!!

Mind you, I can see how you would be annoyed - if you wanted the album and Xscape project to fail. :cheeky:
 
The Estate will never win with fans no matter what they will do. Nothing is good enough. Something tells me even if there would be a Michael’s twin on stage – some would say it is awful to watch it anyway!

I wish to have more information about this hologram to know if or how it’s going to be improved. I think it is important for us to know advantages and disadvantages of this technology, how much time and money will it take to improve it and what are actual plans for it in the future in order of some changes. Why it was made this way but not the other. Maybe, just maybe it is more impersonator like because of some technical reasons? Appears to be slower or something like that...?
Despite the “differences” of VMJ and real MJ – it is obvious that a lot of hard work was made with it and I’m sure everyone knew it is scandalous (if I may say so) to play with MJ image without care … And it is not cheap or offhand. That is way I’d like to know the background story, reasoning, why such decisions were made – from technology to the choosing of jacket. Everything, there was a process and I’d like to know all about it. IMO it was more complicated that we may think. It is just that it is difficult to create more “real” Michael. If they need time, I would say take your time and make it better! It is not all ok but for the first try … but even in this first attempt I see potential. It can be better and what is more important it CAN BE. It is not perfect yet, but it is new and innovative.

I’m very happy for the audience, the stage was really great, the decoration and lights, I’m sure they didn’t see much details of VMJ face or anything we are sad about here.
 
Drama queens

Why do you think MJ left his Estate in the hands of these people? Because he wanted them to hide and lock everything away? I love hearing new songs from MJ and seeing him at the top of the charts, all over the world, again.


Thanks God some of you people are not in charge - we'd never discover anything new.

You don't know why he did it and neither do I. What I do know is that the exploitation of a person's image and in a way, his body, is intrusive and disturbing. What I also do know is that whatever we saw on that stage last night was 100 % not Michael Jackson but an impersonator, so let's stop calling it 'Michael Jackson'.
 
If they don't have footage of MJ actually singing the song, then how were they gonna do it without an impersonator? I don't understand much this tech stuff, but I'm not sure the singing part could be done properly without someone doing it. They could get the dancing from old footage, but the singing?
 
What do you want guys ? so you want Wade and Demon to dominate the night news ? Be grateful Xcape and this performance are getting tremendously good reviews because this is what people need to focus on , the music .
 
People aren't going to start denying it's an impersonator are they? I thought we were in the clear from all that.
 
I have been reading the comments and I guess we can all agree on one thing that the performance in the end was still awesome. I agree with Qbee, the face of CGI generated Michael Jackson was no where near the real MJ. Now when it comes to a solution to that well I believe there IS technology that can improve the features on MJ's face. Am not an animator. But I am a visual effects enthusiast and love watching special effects and animated movies. And I have imagined innumerable number of times a virtual MJ. That is why my expectations were sky high seeing that the visual effects technology today has come to the point that ANYTHING is possible (yes, including creating a virtual MJ). What I have learnt from watching Dreamworks and Pixars "making-of" documentaries is that a lot of time is devoted to the character's mannerisms and face. They have to have so much character that the audience can immediately connect with them. With the MJ hologram, the connecting factor was his dancing but what failed to deliver was his face which doesn't seem to have been worked upon much. Now, I actually have a software which captures a person's face and superimposes it on an animated body. The result is mechanical, the body does everything but the face is just dead. The solution for the face is performance capture. This was notably used for the Na'vi in "Avatar", "Golem" in "LOTR", "Caesar" in "Planet of the Apes" and in a LOT of animated movies. They install a video camera in front of the person's face and then use that information of facial movements on the character they have to animate. The result is highly realistic.

6a0120a6b2c140970c013480ec1366970c-pi


Now, with MJ they would have to make do with his footages, use it to study his facial expressions, mannerisms. This needs a LOT of time. Animators spend months, even years to learn things so that they could replicate it properly. In 6 months this is what you get. I am guessing they hardly studied MJ much but depended on the choreographers to help with the movement. And as this was a projection on screen and meant for a live performance, they didn't devote time on his face because largely the audience would be watching from AFAR. Although I am still at a loss on his dance. Motion capture was used on MJ in "Ghosts". I wonder if they used all that in this performance especially on the "MOONWALK".

gbgfrvd.gif

Thanks. Please post this also in the Thread "connection to Estate". That's what I also thought they should do: Take the Ghosts material (including motion/performance capture) and do a very detailed digital avatar of MJ. They than could "transfer" motion from maybe MJ footage (if that is possible) or from an actor on the digital MJ, animate it and make necessary adjustments by hand. There are also good "facial expression clues" in this Ghosts performance capture for reference when animating.
 
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Fantastic promotion, for the album and MJ!!

Mind you, I can see how you would be annoyed - if you wanted the album and Xscape project to fail. :cheeky:

Do you mean me? I'm not annoyed, I like it (diggin the ending with the flames :) ) and make suggestions how they could improve it.
 
Ok so they are denying it was an impersonator used according to that report.

So 'Michael' was them insulting our intelligence telling us those were his vocals, Xscape (good album) is now about them trying to convince us those are his dances moves and not an impersonator's? I REALLY hope it isn't going in this direction, I want to enjoy this....not fight against them. They are one bad move away from me turning against them for good.

I like that they can't give an explanation for how they did it. It was magic! :D
 
People aren't going to start denying it's an impersonator are they? I thought we were in the clear from all that.

It was not, MJ's impersonators are the worst shit ever, you can definitely tell that was his body structure.
 
Ok so they are denying it was an impersonator used according to that report.

So 'Michael' was them insulting our intelligence telling us those were his vocals, Xscape (good album) is now about them trying to convince us those are his dances moves and not an impersonator's? I REALLY hope it isn't going in this direction, I want to enjoy this....not fight against them. They are one bad move away from me turning against them for good.
I think they might just mean that it was not a live impersonator on stage there. Notice that they say "it was not a hologram, not an impersonator." They didn't say that they did not use an impersonator to create this projection.
 
It was not, MJ's impersonators are the worst shit ever, you can definitely tell that was his body structure.

But an impersonator was used for his dance moves is what I mean, I'm not sure how it's done but an impersonator was used to mimic his dance moves

The future of Michael Jackson is for the whole world to share - not just a few hundred 'hardcore' fans who spend all their lives nit-picking on forums because their hero is dead.

Get over it, and get a life.

And there's those who have so much spare time that they obsess over people having an agenda and check back through a person's previous posts to try and prove it.

You're embarrassing yourself getting so worked up just because some people aren't sharing your love for everything related to this album.

I think they might just mean that it was not a live impersonator on stage there. Notice that they say "it was not a hologram, not an impersonator." They didn't say that they did not use an impersonator to create this projection.

Well that's fine, I would like them to clear up the fact that an impersonator was used in the process though. That could be a bit confusing and come across like they are trying to convince people that is actually MJ's dancing.
 
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Do you mean me? I'm not annoyed, I like it (diggin the ending with the flames :) ) and make suggestions how they could improve it.


I certainly do not mean you. :)

I mean people like RF and a few posters on here.

You know? The ones that want everything to fail, post 2009. :cheeky:
 
^^^

Agreed. - MJ would love this!

Xscape being #1 in more than 50 countries is amazing!! He smiles down on us I'm sure.
 
Yeah I'm out of this thread. My arguments are being misconstrued anyway. Of course I want MJ to succeed. I freaking loved Bad 25 and Xscape. I just have very ethical objections against the manipulation of MJ's body and image to make him do things he never did when he was alive. The thing with his voice is that he recorded it. It was there when he left us. With a hologram, you're faking it. You're using his image to do what you want it to do. And I think that's just a tad disturbing. Anyway this'll be my last post in here. Please stop implying that anyone who dislikes this hologram "wants everything to fail". I want MJ to be respected and treated with dignity and I claim the right to critisize the people responsible when I feel they have failed in doing so (and praise them when they do it right!).
 
MJ ROCKS!!

Everyone talks about MJ these days. - Many papers who have not mentioned him in years have startet to write about him, even in a positive way!!

Great times!!
 
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