Everyone has seen the massive dimension-breaking 3D creatives on big billboards, if not in person, on social media at the very least! These massive creatives can be seen all over the world, and have been used by a wide variety of brands.
One of the things we always notice about these awe-inspiring works is the comments on social media wondering how it’s done. We’re here to break down the technology and artistic techniques used in these creative campaigns, and show you how any brand can do it, on almost any screen.
We want to note that we aren’t here to discredit the creative teams that work hard on these projects. What we want is for everyone to understand the behind-the-scenes, so that they can launch their own impressive campaigns too.
Unique Technology & Screens
One of the biggest myths we want to dismiss is that only a select few screens around the world are capable of outputting these unique campaigns. Almost any screen with a dedicated media player is capable of this.
Some of these screens likely do have some unique components, but they aren’t related to being able to output in 3D.
Hardware isn’t the only part of a digital signage display, the software, such as the CMS solution is also available for any aspiring media owners to purchase. As long as the CMS is able to display video or HTML content, it will be able to show these anamorphic campaigns.
The creative processes used by companies offering these campaigns are likely somewhat unique.
Now, there is one other aspect of these screens that is unique and holds the key to being able to showcase 3D creatives - the location.
Screen Location = Forced Perspective
The most important and unique feature of these 3D-like screens is their location. Locations chosen for these screens are what enable them to display these dimension-shattering creatives.
By placing these screens in locations that force a specific perspective on the viewer, they’re able to make these creatives appear in 3D. That’s the big secret that makes these possible, it’s the use of the forced perspective artistic technique - similar to footpath chalk art.
This is why all the promotional videos you see on social media show the screens from the same angle and location. Viewing these creatives from other angles results in unintended viewing experiences.
That doesn’t mean that you can’t run other creative campaigns on these screens, in fact, many do show more typical creatives. It’s just that these are the perfect locations for forced perspective and making the viewer see things a specific way.
The screens that are well known for showcasing anamorphic creatives all share a similarity in location too. You’ll notice in the videos that they all appear to be on the corner of two streets. This location is again perfect for forcing a specific perspective on the viewer.
Using this technique isn’t easy by any means, but it also isn’t restricted just to massive DOOH screens on the corner of streets. Any screen can take advantage of this, it’s just a matter of how - and that’s part of what makes the creative genius’ so impressive.
Making these 3D anamorphic creatives takes a range of different skills, so whilst anyone is able to display it, it isn’t easy to create at all.
Best Way To Use Anamorphic Creatives
We’ve mentioned social media posts in this article several times, and that’s because 3D campaigns are best executed in tandem with other channels.
Forced perspective works great when you’re able to have viewers see it from the required angle, but that isn’t always possible in the real world. By combining the anamorphic creative with a social media and digital marketing campaign, you’ll see much better results.
One of the biggest reasons a brand makes use of DOOH is to build brand awareness, and what better way than creating a hype-building creative that can be easily shared?
By combining 3D and social media, advertisers are able to get people talking and recognising the brand, even if they don’t physically go and see the creative.
We’ve also seen brands combine anamorphic creatives with wider campaigns that encourage people to come to the location. An example of this is Subway’s somewhat recent campaign.
This campaign had people come to the site, scan a QR code, and build a sub that could then be seen as an anamorphic creative on the screen. By combining social media, news articles and 3D DOOH, this campaign well and truly achieved raising brand awareness and front-of-mind cognisance.
Wrap Up
No one is arguing against the coolness factor of 3D/anamorphic creatives and campaigns. That’s a given - what we’re trying to achieve is educating those who might not be aware of how these are created and executed.
Making use of a very well-known artistic style and combining it with newer technology is an awesome feat. We can’t wait to see more brands making use of anamorphic content, it’s one of the coolest things about DOOH.
Our hope is that this article will help with demystifying how 3D creatives are displayed. We’re not the only ones trying to achieve this, Billups and other industry players are also pulling back the curtain. Hopefully, by helping people understand the how, we’ll encourage them to take the plunge and make use of 3D DOOH - in conjunction with other marketing efforts and channels.
DOOH is a growing technology, and we want to see the boundaries pushed and unique creatives making waves.
If you’re interested in getting started with DOOH in any capacity, reach out to our sales team today!
