AUSTIN, March 26 — Sony Future Lab showcased a new device at the recently concluded SXSW festival that transforms any flat surface into an augmented display.

Using an Alice in Wonderland book as an example, a Sony representative demonstrated how touching any character will take them out of the pages and turn them into interactive animations.

And if you’re wondering how it works, The Verge did us all a favour by explaining it in a nutshell.

Basically, the technology is built from two components: A camera and projection.

The former “map[s] the terrain and tracks changes while hand and finger recognition provides the controls,” and the latter creates the images that appear in the physical space.

A new device from Sony Future Lab could potentially change the way we read. — Screen grab from YouTube