Nonny De La Pena and DNE Studios are using volumetric technology to revive history, showcasing the “1906 Atlanta Race Massacre” at SXSW. This display highlights their technological advancements.

LOS ANGELES, March 8, 2025 — As the sun rises in Austin during SXSW 2025, a groundbreaking event is set to occur at the corner of 6th Street and Congress Avenue. Bryonn Bain’s volumetric representation of Jesse Max Barber, the Black journalist who documented the 1906 Atlanta Race Massacre, will appear not as a simple hologram, but as an interactive and explorable memory. This project, a collaboration between Emmy-winning director Nonny de la Peña and Digital Nation Entertainment’s studio director Addie Reiss, has been selected for SXSW’s XR Experience Competition and marks a significant advancement in bringing history to life through volumetric capture.

Reconstructing the “1906 Atlanta Race Massacre” in Augmented Reality: A Digital Ghost Story

The heart of Barber’s immersive presence lies in DNE’s Santa Monica volumetric 4D stage. There, Reiss’ team used 120 custom RGB-D cameras to record Bain’s performance as a holographic figure. DNE’s unique structured-light sensors achieved extremely high spatial resolution, capturing even the slightest tremor in Bain’s hands as Barber recounts the burning of Black-owned businesses by white mobs. Reiss explains, “We needed to capture the performance with forensic precision while maintaining artistic expression, to effectively convey Bain’s testimony and immerse the audience in the story.”

A Cinematographer’s Strategy: Finding Truth in Images

In a time filled with MetaHumans and AI-generated deepfakes, Reiss’s method of volumetric capture stands out for its straightforwardness: “Record the actor, not a digital imitation.”

Reiss, whose experience includes cinematography for both fictional and documentary films, believes that audiences naturally distrust flawless animations and disconnect emotionally from artificial or simulated figures. He explains, “It’s not about AI tricks; it’s about capturing the light reflecting off an actor in a genuine moment.” Viewers instinctively recognize authenticity and are drawn into the story through Bain’s believable portrayal.

Reiss has been innovating in volumetric capture for a decade, since the technology’s early days. His success comes from combining technical expertise with a talent for storytelling. “For me, volumetric capture is a natural step forward in photography,” Reiss says. “It’s expanding from one camera to many, from two dimensions to three and then four. It’s a new field where science and art come together in directing volumetric 4D capture.”

Making History Accessible: Mobile AR as a Memory Tool

The real innovation of *1906* is its accessibility. Forget expensive holographic displays or cumbersome headsets. Users can access Barber’s volumetric presence using their smartphones, turning their devices into a window to the past and offering each user a unique perspective on the events as they unfold. Reiss emphasizes that as XR creators, they empower and guide viewers through the story without dictating their experience, highlighting how volumetric capture can finally give audiences control over how they experience a scene. He states, “The mobile AR component allows audiences to become active investigators, and volumetric capture lets them choose their own viewpoint as the scene progresses.”

The Future of Memory: The Potential of Gaussian Splats

While the 1906 experience used traditional photogrammetric processing, Reiss’s team is breaking new ground with next-generation 4D Gaussian splatting imagery for future projects. Reiss explains that for over a decade, volumetric capture has been limited by the need to process data into millions of polygons, a method originating from synthetic 3D scenes. “We were aiming for photorealism using fundamentally unreal building blocks.”

That’s where 3D Gaussian Splatting comes in. Reiss declares that they are now moving away from polygons entirely.

According to Reiss, polygons create harsh, artificial edges and struggle to capture fine details such as reflections, hair, a glass of wine, or a glint of light, which were nearly impossible to render using classic computer graphics. With Gaussian Splats, DNE can preserve each photon particle into a light field. “We’re now finally free from building a 3D-mesh model,” Reiss states, “instead, we use the cameras and sensors to paint 3D brushstrokes in space, capturing impressions of light in time.” This results in exceptional realism and the ability to convey subtle details that were previously unattainable with volumetric technologies.

DNE’s future projects are fully embracing 4DGS. Reiss explains that volumetric capture now has the tools to deliver on its promise of creating a truly immersive and realistic representation of reality.

The Importance of “Real” in a World of Deepfakes

As XR deals with AI-generated “actors,” Reiss believes that volumetric capture, when done correctly, becomes an ethical necessity. In an industry focused on machine-generated simulations, DNE is focusing on reality. “We are fully dedicated to restoring the connection between audiences and genuine talent.” Volumetric capture may be the last form of media that preserves the legacy of truth.

Reiss concludes that they are not just building time machines but also creating empathy engines, underscoring DNE’s commitment to using technology to create authentic audience experiences.

Experience “1906 Atlanta Race Massacre”:

World Premiere, SXSW XR Competition Mar 9-11 2025

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SOURCE DNE Studios

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