On Sunday 2nd February 2020, at the EE British Academy Film Awards red carpet event, we blurred the lines between physical and digital fashion to reveal the world’s first 5G-powered AR dress.
The showstopping gown, designed by multi-disciplinary artist, Richard Malone, was worn by EE’s red carpet presenter, Maya Jama.
Spectators at the Royal Albert Hall watched through Samsung Galaxy Fold 5G smartphones and on screens as Maya stepped onto the EE stage. Watching the spectacle live through this state-of-the-art smartphone, fans could see the shimmering digital material begin to swirl around the dress.
The 5G-powered show continued with the digital fabric forming sculptures on either side of Maya. Responding to Maya’s movements in real time, the animated material wrapped around her to form a completely new design for the top half of her dress, before billowing out around her to form a spiral of this cutting-edge digital fabric.
In a breath-taking finale, the material transformed into a stunning crystallised structure, glimmering in the spotlights on the red carpet before shattering and falling away from Maya to reveal the physical dress underneath this extraordinary display of augmented reality.
This unmissable moment was made possible through the power of 5G on EE, while the physical couture dress designed by Richard Malone was made from ethically sourced fabric including recycled, regenerative ocean waste, recycled wool and wadding from ex-factory waste. Made up of six layers in total, the bespoke dress contained over twelve full body length wires, totalling over 18 metres in length, and eighteen sensor bulbs.
