I bet John Woo’s 1997 action blockbuster flick Face/Off would be just as convincing if Nick Cage and John Travolta were to wear the realistic face masks from Kamenya Omote.
Kamenya Omote, owned by Shuhei Okawara, is a store in Tokyo that specializes in selling masks. Masks like, you know, for parties (perhaps for secret ‘parties’ like those in Eyes Wide Shut?), cosplay or whatnot. Not face mask that is “all the rage now.”
In other words, it won’t protect you from any virus. So, yeah, you can literally buy a “face” in Japan. These real person masks are 3D printed face of a real person’s face. So, technically, you could be that person’s twin. Not blood-related, of course. The mask won’t change your DNA.
Anyhoo… the shop actually pays any willing person 40,000 yen (about US$390) for the right to use his or her face. A “donor” person will have his or her face 3D scanned and turned into very realistic-looking face mask.
No mention of the material, but judging from how it is handled, it is not of silicone. And obviously, Mission Impossible’s tech isn’t quite here yet (thankfully for that!).
The masks are sold for 98,000 yen (around US$950) each. Well, what can I say? This kind of takes identify theft to the next level. Except that it is not quite theft, but there are concerns of misuse. That said, it is not clear if the mask will work with Face ID or not.
Images: Yahoo! News/Facebook (Kamenya Omote).
Source: Yahoo! News.
