Observatory
The Confluence of Artistry and Visual Technology

There is no doubt that technologies like Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual reality (VR), or Mixed Reality (MR) are fundamentally changing our collective understanding of the physical world. Through immersive, real-and-virtual environments, they are reimagining what’s possible, challenging the impossible, and shaping the way we communicate, work, and live. But, technology alone does not have that power. It needs to be augmented by rich, high-quality content to create the intended impact.
Unfortunately, most of the brands or companies using AR and VR underestimate or outrightly ignore the power of content and the role it plays in making these technologies effective. And others struggle to create content as it requires both strong technical acumen and a sense of artistry.

Ben Sheppee, Founder, Observatory knows this to be true. In his words, “VR and AR technologies are distribution platforms, and are only made valuable with good content concepts and well executed content production. As a creative visual production company, we focus on the art and experiences that work best inside these technologies.”

Founded in Greenwich, London, Observatory shares the namesake to The Royal Observatory that is well-known for its history of astronomy and navigation. Much like its telescope that rotates in 360 degrees to allow thousands of visitors to view the night sky, Observatory directs and executes content for immersive, live, and virtual events — offering its customers visual content like none other. From concept to execution, the company creates experiences in the form of projection mapping, 360 installations, holograms, and LED stage setups.

They use both AR and VR to pre-visualize content in virtual spaces and sometimes plan environments. Such an approach helps Observatory creates content that responds to specific locations and also promotes meaningful discussions with a client before that space has been decided upon or invested in. “We are platform agnostic and when we design content, we hope for it to live in as many different platforms as possible.

In most projects, the majority of the work is design and animation, and from there adapting that for Print, Web, Film or VR / AR is really a technique for us to help the content live in more spaces and have a wider reach,” says Sheppee.

Observatory offers free creative consultations to understand their clients or advise on what approach might be most effective. “Sometimes AR and VR are the best approach and they can outline how art and technology might be used to create a memorable experience that drives brand values and best communicates a specific narrative to an audience. We treat the technology as part of the canvas,” says Sheppee.

Observatory also incorporates Hololens and Oculus in its augmented and virtual reality solutions. As both technologies work well for trade show environments, they have delivered a number of projects that help transport audiences away from the show floor and captivate them in another world for a few moments to deliver a message.

“AR allows our trade show clients to demonstrate large scale objects in a limited space through a holographic form. VR production techniques have also been useful in technologies like Igloo Vision’s immersive domes among others. Both tools are great disruptors and help ignite new ideas and possibilities to build something unique. In the past, 3d modelling was limited to work on a 2d screen, but now it’s possible to walk around an object as you sculpt it,” says Sheppee. Oculus CV1 is a standard piece of kit that Observatory has in each of its editing suites. Meaning, they can design and edit directly in the headset. VR production techniques can also be applied to different settings. “We have done a lot of work with Igloo Vision. This setup requires a rectangular workflow similar to VR. We also recently supported Dua Lipa with a physical 360 setup in the form of a giant cylinder set up in the Royal Albert hall for the American Music Awards.
Even in this case, we used VR processes,” he adds.

Observatory has also worked with Playboy & Shantell Martin to create an augmented reality piece that is being sold as an NFT for the Charity Glam. Based on a 1976 interview that Bowie did with Playboy magazine, focusing a lot on his Bi-sexuality. With Playboy being one of the oldest magazines in existence, it’s revolutionary for them to appear at the forefront of innovative technologies and the augmented reality piece.

Such instances of success always push Observatory to up the ante — which is evident in their roadmap plans. “We will start a secondary company called Satellite, which will essentially serve as our R&D wing. We are currently looking into how real-time engines can disrupt some of the processes in film making and broadcast,” says Sheppee.

At a glance, Sheppee’s is an award-winning Creative Director, Digital Artist, and Curator whose work and projects have inspired and innovated spaces, stages, and experiences in more than 40 countries. His team has embodied unparalleled artistic acumen combined with a unique sense of adaptability and improvisation to stay on par with the constantly evolving technological landscape. No doubt, over the years, Sheppee has built the Observatory team to support him and leverage these tech innovations in a way that compliments his artistic capabilities whilst fueling the company’s success. Now, that’s “Secret Sauce” worth banking on!