Hik+ by Tupac Martir and Satore Studio (2017)

Caminante (Hik+) is a digital poem with real-time interactions with social networks, created for the Johnnie Walker Christmas campaign. The piece was projected onto Mexico City’s largest ‘canvas’ measuring 100×40 metres – the Torre Reforma skyscraper.

At the time, Mexico City was recovering from one of the worst earthquakes in its history and Hik+ was a love letter to the city and all of the people that live there. Accompanied by two poems, the digital/animation piece centred round a character stuck in a maze. The film follows his journey through the obstacle-filled labyrinth, where he never gives up despite being presented with challenge after challenge.

The character Hik+ (pronounced He-ku), derived from a native Huichol word meaning ‘Caminante’ or ‘Walker’.

Hik+ was created using Motion Capture, Cinema 4D, Coding, Notch, Maya, Houdini and After Effects. For the motion capture of Caminante (Hik +), a performance by Mexican dancer Isaac Hernandez was recorded in mocap. While the music score was crearted by Karim Gonzalez.

Watch Full Video

Tupac Martir is a multidisciplinary artist whose work spans the fields of painting, drawing, etching, technology, lighting, projection and video, sound design, music, and composition, as well as choreography and costumes. Vogue has described him as “the visual designer and creative director behind some of the most important events in the world”. He has provided production design, visuals and lighting direction for the likes of Elton John, Beyoncé, Danny Boyle, the Coachella Music & Arts Festival and Serpentine Gallery.

Martir is renowned within the fashion industry and has worked on ground-breaking shows for Alexander McQueen, Moschino, Alexander Wang, and Thomas Tait, among others. His artistic works have been shown across the world, including the Venice Film festival, The Eye Film Museum and Carnegie Hall.