Dubai World Cup 2023 Closing Ceremony

INFRAMES expanded on and polished Artists in Motion’s creative vision for the closing ceremony of this year’s Dubai World Cup.

Early this year, Artists in Motion approached INFRAMES to add Notch visuals to their overall audiovisual production for the closing ceremony of this year’s Dubai World Cup, commissioned by the Dubai Racing Club. Since 1996, the event has been held at Meydan Racecourse at the end of March and continues to be the world’s most prestigious horse racing event with a prize purse of USD $30.5 million.

In a world first, the event combined over two thousand M2 LED screens and augmented reality accompanied by a choreographed ensemble of drones, planes, and pyrotechnics. The show featured 1,900 drones–the movements of which broke two Guinness World Records–and two acrobatic motor gliders firing pyro, laser lights, and fireworks synchronised to an original soundtrack.

Artists in Motion supplied all necessary models, baked animation, and direction, while INFRAMES incorporated augmented reality elements, such as ribbons and a spaceman, for the live broadcast. To ensure seamless integration, Creative Technology used a full tracking camera system from stYpe, and the team delivered the final product with a disguise media server.

INFRAMES specifically used Notch to achieve a smooth performance of over fifty frames per second and enable the position of every piece of animation. They also used Notch for colour correction, masking, and tracking, using the live feed from disguise to produce an accurate reflection on the spaceman’s helmet as well as ambient light around the racetrack and screens.

“Notch allowed for meticulous attention to detail that enhanced the overall sense of realism and movement integration for a really impressive visual experience.”

Haitham Taha, Notch Producer, INFRAMES

Additional press coverage:
The National, Khaleej Times.

Credits
Client: Dubai Racing Club
Creative Agency: Artists in Motion Middle East
Head of Creative & Show Director: Richard Lindsay
Managing Director: Stella Carmody
Project Director: Natalie Grassick
Head of Design: Jonny Old
Creative Director: Caterina Vicaretti
Pyro: Flash Art
Glider Planes: Aerosparx

Executive Producer: Liz Goodyer
Technical Director: Nick Newey
Head of Motion: Matt Lock
Head of 3D: Alex Zaloudek
Senior Producer: Olivia Beale
Notch Producer: Haitham Taha (INFRAMES)
Lighting Designer: Aaron Russ
Music Composer: Vladimir Persan
Audio, Video, Lighting: Creative Technology (CT)
Tracking System: stYpe