The folks who brought you the virtual yellow 1st & 10 line in football, NASCAR's car-tracking system and that flaming puck in hockey are bringing some of that technology to the Oscars.
Beginning at 6 p.m. (ET), E!'s Live From the Red Carpet broadcast before the Academy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles Sunday night will include Sportvision technology that allows real-time tracking of celebrities. E! also used it at the Golden Globes on Jan. 11, but the provider says there are new features this time around.
In addition to arrows and labels, Sportvision's Star Tracker image-based system lets hosts identify select celebrities in a "three-dimensional perspective," perhaps to point out luminaries " walking in close proximity to other celebrities who they are trying to avoid."
E! also was to have graphic "name-tag" capabilities.
Star tracking will be done in "faux live" replay packages built by E! and the technology provider, Sportvision coordinating producer Jonathan Corl said, saying E! was more comfortable doing it that way.
"It's like John Madden on Sunday Night Football asking for a replay and the guys in the truck put it together for him," he explained.
