Die Maus in 3D
A question of character
How do you translate the lovingly drawn Die Maus into the third dimension? Its appearance and character are both famous and beloved, creating a sense of familiarity for young and old alike for 50 years. It was crucial to preserve this and avoid the generic nature of conventional 3D aesthetics. The simple iconic form, the typical Die Maus gaze, the upright walk: we didn't just recreate and animate all of this in 3D, but optimised it for every perspective.
3D character design
Die Maus in 3D. Character design and animation by Machbar.
The official 3D version of 'Germany's most famous mouse' was unveiled by WDR in Cologne for its 50th birthday – realised by Machbar. With its black outline and flat colour fill, the 3D Die Maus can be presented just like the familiar two-dimensional Die Maus. A version without an outline and with a lit shader, which provides plasticity, was created specifically for use in augmented and mixed reality applications. And here too, Die Maus fans have not protested: there is a lot of Die Maus in the 3D Die Maus.
Brand implementation
The Maus now looks good from every perspective.
We developed an augmented reality application for the 3D-Maus, allowing fans to bring Die Maus into their homes and take photos with her. Users simply access the website www.diemausin3D.de on an AR-enabled smartphone or tablet. Since its launch, countless Maus fans worldwide have posted and shared pictures with Die Maus.
The 3D-Maus even made it onto the Tagesthemen news programme. On 5 March 2021, she greeted viewers alongside Pinar Atalay, including an introduction in Turkish.
For Die Maus's 50th birthday, a 1.70 m tall, coloured Maus figure was produced based on our 3D data. WDR Director Tom Buhrow officially unveiled it. It stands in front of the WDR building in Cologne and has since become a popular selfie spot for Maus fans.
