Bald Trump in realtime. Used to baldstream the final 2016 presidential debate on October 19, 2016.
This app is built using OpenFrameworks, an open-source arts-engineering toolkit.
Functions:
- stream video from a Blackmagic screen recorder OR play recorded video
- recognize a split screen or full screen shot to identify and focus in on Trump
- extract the foreground of the image, given a background of relatively constant cool luminance
- do facial recognition using Kyle McDonald's ofxFaceTracker (follow setup instructions there to properly setup the addon)
- remove his hair and fill it in with the median background color
- render a bald 3d model in the same orientation as his face
- blend Trump's face into the rendered model
- output the video texture over syphon
*Curious about the name "Samson"? It's after Samson, the Strong Man—a biblical figure who, if his hair were ever cut, would lose all his strength.
Many thanks to Golan Levin and Thomas Hughes at the Studio for Creative Inquiry, Carnegie Mellon University.