Eminem’s 1999 alter ego returns, via AI, live onstage at the ceremony and on the music icon’s ‘Houdini’ video, which scored the first VFX VMA honor for a digital character recreated in an AI-powered pipeline – watch it here!
Creative studio Metaphysic, specialists in combining generative AI technology and human artistry to achieve photoreal digital facial re-creations, re-created a live performance of Eminem’s 1999 alter ego, Slim Shady, onstage at this year’s MTV Video Music Awards held last night at the UBC Arena in New York. The studio also won the Best Visual Effects Award alongside production company Synapse and director Rich Lee for Eminem’s Houdini video, the first ever VFX VMA awarded for a digital character recreated by artists using an AI-powered pipeline.
Metaphysic CEO Tom Graham shared, “It’s so amazing to work together with Marshall hand in hand to recreate this character using our Generative AI tools and artistry.”
In the video, winner of the best Hip-Hop VMA, Eminem’s iconic alter ego, Slim Shady, makes a dramatic return, stepping out of a portal from the past to save Marshall Mathers’ career. The video, featuring cameos from Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Pete Davidson, and others, explores the duality of Slim Shady and Marshall Mathers, culminating in a rooftop standoff where the two characters merge into a unified Eminem. Metaphysic’s contributions to the video, overseen by VFX Supervisor Jo Plaete, was the AI re-creation of Slim Shady, capturing his youthful appearance with his signature bleached hair.
The challenge to achieve the high fidelity needed for the re-creation required Metaphysic’s team to train AI models on data from Slim Shady’s late 90’s prime. In the music video, Marshall Mathers played both himself and Slim Shady, with the AI synthesizing the latter’s iconic look. During Eminem’s VMA live performance, a stand-in performed Slim Shady’s dance moves, while swapping the Metaphysic face, applied in real time, in-camera for broadcast viewers, and on a large screen for the live audience. The approach resulted in a believable re-creation of Slim Shady that stands up to scrutiny.
The project’s success, in addition to the technology, was the collaboration between the AI double and human performances. The convincing performances allowed the AI models to capture and enhance the nuances of Slim Shady’s look and behavior. The final product was a seamless blend of performance and technology, bringing Slim Shady back to life in a way that resonated with fans.
Completed in just under three weeks, the Houdini music video was a technical achievement that showcased the potential of AI in visual effects. The video went viral, receiving millions of views and widespread acclaim for its innovative use of technology to recreate one of the most recognizable personas in hip-hop history.
Watch it here:
Get more information on the Metaphysic website.
Source: Metaphysics
Debbie Diamond Sarto is news editor at Animation World Network.
