thePULSECGI Technology
Film’s Salvation or Its Ruination? Love it or Hate It, It’s Here to Stay
December 2005 –
CGI films are great. They create new worlds and give a film’s creator/director the ability to put his or her imagination on screen with relative ease ~ no make-up, no expensive pyrotechnics, no sets, and no big name actors/actresses if you don’t want ‘em. All you need from humans are some voices ~ and who knows, maybe that will change soon too.
Some of you probably disagree with me. In fact, human nature being what it is, I’m actually sure that some of you do. You’d argue that CGI movies can lack the depth of character and nuance that human actors bring to the screen. How can we relate to a character made up of pixels and mathematical algorithms and not flesh, blood, and emotion? Sure CGI movies are flashy, but they don’t convey the sense of reality that we look for in a good cinematic story. Imagine Braveheart as a CGI flick.
But there’s no arguing that CGI has its place.
For better or worse, CGI has insinuated itself into the film industry and it is, without a doubt, here to stay. Aside from starring in fully computer-animated productions, CGI is used to enhance “live-action” films, especially those of the sci-fi/fantasy genres. Consider DOOM, a current action flick that gamers of our generation were anxious to see. CGI is used to enhance most of the effects in the film, from travel through the “arc” (see the movie) to an action sequence that mimics the game’s first person shooter view. All computer effects, and all pretty well done, too. In fact, the blood splatter was just like in the games. Yippee!!
There is no doubt that some animated films were made for CGI. The Shrek movies, for instance, as great as the stories are, would not be nearly as interesting (or successful at the box office) if computer animation had not been used to bring the characters to life. Movies like Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within and Kaena: The Prophecy are also well served by computer animation’s advances. And this is exactly the technology’s strength: CGI can be used to create fanciful characters and worlds that fascinate us, especially with advances in computers and animation software happening in leaps and bounds. With each new film, actions become more life-like and scenery and characters achieve more depth and subtleties.
Of course, CGI effects can be abused and mishandled. Directors sometimes allow the visual feasts that computers offer to undermine any real content a movie may have had. How about the latest Star Wars movies? Any interesting character developments that could have occurred in these movies were overwhelmed by constant CGI action sequences. Who needs content when you can blow as much stuff up as you want, without having to actually blow it up? Perhaps these movies would have been better served if they had been produced completely with CGI. At least then, the characters might have been three-dimensional, if only in geometric representation (sorry, George!).
CGI has made a place for itself, or more correctly, some very talented directors and animators have made a place for it, in today’s film industry. As technology continues its steady progress towards Artificial Intelligence and a ruling all-knowing cybernetic brain that controls every aspect of human life, we’ll see even greater improvements. And more importantly for the industry, CGI technology will become cheaper and faster. Will it ruin film? CGI films have presented us with some excellent and entertaining offerings, but it hasn’t taken over. It seems that it can only enhance films, if used correctly. Will the technology replace human actors completely? Not if hundreds of highly paid Hollywood personalities have anything to say about it. But let’s face it, this article could have easily been titled “Steven Seagal – Film’s Salvation or Ruination?” Somehow, I just don’t think he would have been able to pull off a live-action Shrek any better than he did Above the Law.
