Unleash Your Inner Samurai at a Mixed Reality Installation for FX’s Shogun
Step into the Shogun’s world—where state-of-the-art augmented reality transforms your reflection into a samurai warrior, all within a digital koi pond fit for a feudal lord.
After The Mill created the series trailer for Shogun, FX approached the Experience team to create a physical installation at San Diego Comic Con and at Disney's D23 convention to promote the series by featuring authentic wardrobe pieces from the show and a koi pond. The Experience team built a convention booth evoking a feudal lord's residence, complete with a digital koi pond designed using Epic's Unreal engine. As attendees gazed into the koi pond, they witnessed their own reflections adorned with samurai armor in augmented reality. More than 7,000 visitors unleashed their inner samurai over the course of 4 days at San Diego Comic Con.
CLIENT: FX, DISNEY
DIRECTORS: MICHAELANGELO ROCCO, BEN CLOSSON
LINKS: FX’s SDCC PROMO
The Shogun booth, styled after Edo Period architecture, featured wardrobe pieces from the TV series and a digital koi pond where guests saw their reflections transformed into samurai with augmented reality (AR).
Behind the scenes at San Diego Comic Con: our producer and I try on the latest AR samurai suit while the tech team sets up the hardware to run the experience.
The original concept called for a placard on the bridge railing, but we landed on a more seamless approach: using guests’ hand placement to trigger the AR reflection. This naturally positioned them for tracking—elbows out, others nudged aside—eliminating the need for signage or instructions and keeping the experience intuitive. (Creative Direction: Michaelangelo Rocco, Illustration: Roger Hom)
An early concept sketch featured a more elaborate roof and a full bridge, which was later revised to be ADA compliant. (Creative Direction: Michaelangelo Rocco, Illustration: Roger Hom)
The 3D scale render brought the booth design into sharper focus with refined details and layout revisions. (Creative Direction: Michaelangelo Rocco, 3D Art: MVRK)