It's Never Me
Maryia Markhvida
Advisor: Simone Salvo
It's Never Me is a movement-based investigation that seeks new ways of processing information to lessen the burden of our existence. The work resulted in the creation of a fully autonomous digital dancer, Notame, who is able to generate original choreography in real time and perform and interact with other dancers and the audience.
Abstract
It's Never Me is a movement-based investigation by artist Mary Mark that seeks new ways of processing information to lessen the burden of our existence. As a result of year-long research work, a fully autonomous digital dancer, Notame, was created. Notame is able to generate original choreography in real-time, which is performed in a duet with a real dancer through the use of projection and motion capture technology.
The investigation was shown in three forms: a performance (Metamorphosis), a physical installation (the Book of Movement), and an interactive piece for the viewers to engage and dance with.
In May 2024, Mary Mark performed a duet with Notame, called Metamorphosis. Metamorphosis is an improvised performance that explores the themes of escapism, existence in a blended physical/digital space, hopelessness, and the search for liberation. The piece uses real-time motion capture and rear-mesh projection to create a seemingly tech-free boundary between the physical and the virtual space. In this performance, the dancer, who is stuck in a loop of self-destruction, discovers a virtual reflection of herself. Throughout the performance, the virtual self-reflection (performed by Notame) gains autonomy and shows the dancer new ways of being in her own body, helping her break away from the destructive patterns.
In April 2024, the Book of Movement was exhibited at NYC Resistor's interactive art show. The Book of Movement is a video sculpture showcasing Notame's movement foundation and the basis of her thinking mind. The Book was created by harnessing the power of collective thinking and gathering over 450 public interpretations of Notame's movement. It comprises Notame's 50 foundational moves, where each movement is projected onto a different page and is overlaid with the corresponding written interpretations.
Technical Details
Notame was created in a multi-phase process: 1) Digital motion capture of several movement sessions using OptiTrack, Motive, Motion Builder, and Unreal, totaling 60 minutes of movement improvisation by two dancers. 2) Creation of a virtual movement database comprised of over 50 moves extracted from the motion capture data. These moves make up the foundation of Notame’s choreography palette; 3) Development of a movement algorithm in Unreal Engine that allows Notame to generate choreography in real-time.
Further Reading
Special thank you to Shamar Watt for participating in this project and for allowing Notame to be partially based on his movement.