Epiroc Days 2021
Epiroc, a leading productivity partner for the mining, infrastructure and natural resources industries, organised the Epiroc Days in June 2021.
The Epiroc Days are a virtual event supported by Augmented Reality, in which 500-600 managers of the combined worldwide branches of Epiroc are informed on the current ongoings and performance of the business and its vision, in an accessible and engaging way. Evoke Studios presented Epiroc and Bright Blue with a fitting concept which functioned as its backdrop.
The Augmented Window set concept
An accessible, innovative branded experience which amplifies the company’s mission, while being safely deployable for global remote audiences.
The concept behind the stage design for the Epiroc Days was driven from a place of inspiration by the world of amazing Epiroc machines and the environments within which the company deploys them and their supporting services.
Combining this inspiration with tracking technology and bleeding edge real-time rendering presented the idea of creating the exteriors of Epiroc inside a large LED back wall, as a virtual space beyond the screen, which the camera would look through like a large window.
Other elements to the stage design concept include application of the hexagonal shape, a recognisable feature within the company’s branding, to extend the physical set with layers of Augmented Reality. You can see the floating lines as an example, as well as the floor in front of the stage, which is fully done in Augmented Reality, covering the real stage floor.
With optimised 3d models of the latest Epiroc machines to support keynote speaker narrative, and integration of live conference calls in AR, this made for a compelling package and engaging experience for the attendees and the people on stage.
Virtual lighting
Working closely with Fredrik Johnsson, the Lighting Designer, there were further integrations in Unreal Engine to include virtual lighting fixtures, fully controllable from the lighting desk, which seamlessly fed into the lighting workflow and looked like the real thing in-camera.
A combination of on-brand set design, which left purposeful room for Augmented Reality and lighting, alongside LED screen based perspective rendering technologies borrowed from XR, together present a very high production value, on-brand experience, which was safely delivered to a remote audience.
A fully branded package
The throughline for the event was the Epiroc Book, a document outlining the company values and its new slogan of DARE TO THINK NEW!
We applied the Epiroc Book as a style guide in addition to the Epiroc branding guidelines to create a unique visual identity for the Epiroc Days summit. Its DNA is found in every aspect of the design of the AR elements and is featured strongly in the on-air package design.
Forward thinking, respecting the past.
We are very pleased Epiroc, and Bright Blue provided us with the trust to present them with a forward thinking solution for this remote summit. We expect this customisable, budget sensitive concept to return in many forms for future productions.
It presents a sensible alternative to XR for corporate enterprise product presentations, summits and trade shows, and maintains high production value, accessibility, and confidence of delivery, also during a pandemic.
As the base of the concept includes a branded physical set design, it continues to function well in contexts which include in-person audiences or visitors, when those are more likely to take place again, while providing increased remote audience engagement and rewatchability.