The creativity of agency Lg2 in Quebec could arguably give any modern-day illusionist a run for their money. Recently the agency pulled a magic trick from its hat to promote last weekend’s Quebec City Magic Festival, showing that the proof is not always in the footage.

The stunt was meant to be a (tech) taste of the magic fest, with the agency using digital boards and video cameras to bring the illusion to fruition. Six large monitors, with cameras atop, lined the front of a store on a busy street in Quebec. When people walked by, their image was captured and projected onto the screens – that is, except for two.

The agency hired two professional comedians and pre-filmed them (a half hour before the stunt) waving and moving about, which was projected in real-time onto the two screens when a group of people walked by, says Luc Du Sault, creative VP, Lg2. Only the actors’ images were projected onto the trick screens, so when others walked by behind them, they appeared invisible.

“People like to watch themselves when they’re being filmed, so we took that insight and decided to trick them,” says Du Sault. “We wanted to surprise people, to leave a small question mark over their heads.”

The festival didn’t stop at the experiential stunt, it also had Lg2 place wild postings with an image of a woman seemingly cut in half (as a result of the poster being cut down the middle) placed on buildings in the city, as well as radio, online and magazine ads that gave details about what to expect at the fest, he adds.

This is the second magic-inspired second stunt that the creative agency has rolled out for the fest. For the Quebec City Magic Festival’s launch last year, the agency created a billboard with a giant magician hat placed on top. Birds would then fly out from the opening to create the illusion of a bottomless hat. How they managed to get the birds to come out without entering from the top, he says, will remain an Lg2 secret.

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