• The Baylor grad behind the BBMA’s Michael Jackson ‘hologram’

    The Michael Jackson “hologram” that had people buzzing after Sunday night’s Billboard Music Awards? That was the product of a Baylor graduate.

    Specifically, it was created by a startup company, Pulse Evolution, headed by CEO Frank Patterson, BA ’85, MA ’87. Patterson is also the dean of the Florida State University College of Motion Picture Arts, one of the nation’s top film schools, and was back at Baylor speaking to students here just a month ago; he even described the technologies involved in the virtual Michael Jackson appearance, but said nothing about what was to come except for a suggestion that students watch the awards show.

    According to Dr. Michael Korpi, a professor of film and digital media at Baylor, the performance wasn’t really a hologram; instead, it employs a centuries-old stage illusion based around a half-silvered mirror. Regardless, the performance was the talk of the entertainment world Sunday night (see stories from People, Entertainment Weekly and TIME, just for starters).

    Sic ’em, Frank!