I'm MEME—I am MEME. Created with CG. —The Potential of Virtual Humans

"NEWSPACE" is a project aiming to expand the role of art directors. It pursues expression by combining a free domain unbound by media or genre with visual ideas. The second installment of NEWSPACE features "Meme," a virtual human created with CG.

Hitomi Matsushita, who handled Meme's art direction, shares the story behind her creation and the potential of "virtual humans."

She's CG, but Meme is just an ordinary girl with her own insecurities.

I'm Meme. Born to parents in the art world, I love art, design, photography, and dream of making it my career. My personality? Punk. I have freckles and slightly noticeable birthmarks on my forehead and chin, which I sometimes feel self-conscious about, but I also try to see them as positive aspects of my individuality. Of course, she has her negative moments and a slightly neurotic side. She wants to understand things happening around her and in society with her own mind, without looking away, and "being real" is her motto.

Meme debuted to the world in April 2019 when she created her Instagram account. The name "Meme" was chosen with the dual meaning of an internet meme that everyone edits together and "with love" in a pun-filled way.

I started creating her around September last year. At the time, I was witnessing rapid advances in CG technology through my work, and virtual influencers were starting to trend. That's when I thought, "What if I deliberately created an ordinary girl using CG and depicted her everyday life? That could be interesting!" A friend at a CG production company and a photographer found the idea intriguing, so the three of us started it as a personal artwork project.

A new perspective: enjoying the illusion between virtual and real

When creating Meme, I focused on realism. I didn't want her to have a perfect beauty face, so I intentionally gave her a slightly bulbous nose and added freckles and blemishes. We went through quite a few iterations until we settled on natural details.

Our Instagram posts also include everyday scenes like drinking coffee at a cafe, cleaning, or changing clothes. Moving forward, we plan to have her engage in romantic relationships with real men.

Using Instagram, I tell stories about common girl struggles and romantic entanglements. By linking these to the real world and drawing viewers in, I aim to create a new kind of content that blurs the line between virtual and real.

 The Expanding "Virtual Influencer" Market

Over the past six months, Japan has seen a surge in famous virtual influencers, with the market heating up to the point where agencies specializing in CG models have already been established. They secure contracts similar to human models, posting photos taken with celebrities at brand events on social media and appearing in media and advertisements.

The potential and market for virtual influencers, capable of adapting to any situation, will continue to expand rapidly.

We aim to express the diversity of CG-made virtual influencers—not just doll-like models with perfect figures, but characters lacking confidence in their appearance, those who are overweight, or even middle-aged men.
 
Participating in the NEWSPACE project has brought Meme to the attention of a wider audience. In fact, Meme's face, with mascara running down her cheeks from tears, graced the cover of the September issue of CGWORLD magazine.

Art Director Skills Applicable Across Diverse Fields

I'm now in my tenth year as an art director. After joining the company, I thought I'd be making commercials and posters, but the scope of my work has been incredibly diverse—from designing clothing and creating café concepts to developing products for a donut shop. Most recently, I worked on a film production as part of a fashion brand's promotion. It's content utilizing interactive e-commerce technology that lets you shop while watching the movie.

I feel this breadth of work is unique to the role of art director. We can present our ideas and concepts as a single image. The strength of an art director lies in persuading people through the visuals that first catch their eye.

I started creating Meme with a playful spirit, without any constraints, so I never imagined it would reach the world like this. I look forward to seeing Meme thrive, living between the virtual and real worlds, as we shape free ideas into reality through technology.

We will continue to release new expressions one after another. For companies interested in our work, please contact ぜひこちらinfo@newspace.galleryまでご連絡よろしくお願いします. Stay tuned for future developments.