The Lady in the Wood

Shot in a small forest near Mount Fuji, The Lady in the Wood is a real-time markerless facial projection mapping piece, strongly inspired by the Mexican legend of Santa Muerte. Where much of my work carries a distinctly Japanese aesthetic, this project draws from a different cultural territory entirely, one shaped by Christian iconography and Western traditions, where death, beauty and the sacred coexist without contradiction.

Until then, facial projection mapping had always been performed in controlled studio conditions, with stable lighting and easy access to power. Taking the system outdoors was a deliberate challenge, an experiment in robustness that pushed both the technology and the creative process into unfamiliar territory, a challenge that would prove essential two months later on the stage of Eurovision.

Working with photography director Ryosuke Makita was a defining experience for me. Beyond handling the camera, his eye shaped the visual language of the piece in ways I hadn't anticipated, pushing me toward colors I would not normally reach for, well outside my usual comfort zone. The result was richer for it.