Digital Technology in the Film Avatar - Assignment Example

Digital technology report please write about the different technology They used in the movie (Avatar) 2009. Introduction The film Avatar received wide credit for several technical novelty and won laurels like best film drama at the Golden Globe Awards and three of the nine Oscars for which it was nominated. An award winning film like Avatar (2009) is based on strong performances, use of innovative special effects and strong directors like James Cameron who worked on the film for 20years. It took $300million to make this film and it earned 2.78 billion in box office. James Cameron has used visual effects technology in The Terminator (1984), Abyss (1989) and Titanic (1997). In Abyss he used CGI to produce effect of the morphing of alien creatures and it was the most photorealistic blending of CGI and live action for that time. Stephen Bugaz suggested that films like Avatar were more towards animation with elements of live action. The creatures of Na’vi were not only virtually designed but the whole Pandora, landscape, flora and fauna added to the believability of the world (Valk & Arnold, 2013). In 2010 the movie was selected for eight British Academy Film Awards and won the BAFTA prize for Best Production design and unique visual outcome. Visual effects Stereopsis is an optical illusion where our brain sent our eyes the signal to visualize a two dimensional object as a three dimensional object. This optical illusion has been used as a trick in the 3D film Avatar. The film has used high tech active glasses with side by side liquid crystal display (LCD’s) in place of lenses. The two LCD’s opened and closed alternatively and synchronized with the images on the screen via radio transmitters in the theatre thereby inducing the brain of the viewer to form a three dimensional illusion. Except for few sequences there was no camera used in the studio where Avatar was made. The actor’s movement was recorded by motion capture which suited their body movements and facial expressions. James Cameron integrated the digital image of the characters with a 3D image of the virtual environment of Pandora generated in real time so that he could see the 3D world as he directed the movements of the actors and could remake a scene if he did not liked it (Straubhaaar,2013). Visual effects can be described as animation done in support of “live action plates” and it is primarily about surroundings and non character dynamics. Avatar takes this idea further. The technology of visual effects makes us believe that fantasy places like that of Na’vi’s Pandora as depicted in Avatar exists in reality. Avatar is basically a photorealistic animated film with live action plates created in the support of animation. Computer generated imagery has become a common element in film production. CGI has replaced other form of camera, optical and special effects. CGI has enhanced photorealism in Avatar through the creation of realistic background in the film. It has created fantastic imagery in the film. CGI creates background images using three part process: developing the spatial characteristics of the object through 3-D model, producing the finished image and then animating the object and stimulating movement (Valk & Arnold, 2013). Avatar is 90% computer generated and has live action features. The design of creatures and characters play a very important role in any film having visual effects. Avatar has applied character drawing to its benefit. The humanoid characters were similar enough to a human which allowed the audience to connect and has also helped in utilizing motion capture of the actors. The issue of “uncanny valley” was not there in this film but this issue generally rises with motion captured animated films. The “uncanny valley” refers to the result when an attempt is made to mimic humans in look but f this process fails then it gets creepy for the audience. Those living in the Na’vi tribes have blue colored skin and facial structures which resembled to that of humans and thus the problem was avoided. Motion capture (MoCap) tracks the movement of real life performers through the use of optical reference points of their bodies and then the data is collected which is applied to computer created characters of the virtual world. The use of supports with tracking markers on the MoCap platform lets the performer to interrelate with the rudiments of that area. This technology has been used in Avatar (Okun, 2013). The performance capture know-how eliminated the requirement of facial sensors and markers which hinder the presentation of the actors. In place of that, the camera panned the head, a rig and a small camera was placed in front of the performers (Valk & Arnold, 2013). Sound effects Avatar was appealing to the viewer’s not only because of its visual appeal but also due to its melodrama. Melodrama offered individuals to imagine themselves as heroes in wake of any revolution. In French terms melodrama means blending song and dance in traditional form of drama. Melodramas are set in symbolic worlds and conclude that hero has vanquished the evil and restored peace. Melodrama has become a dominant narrative style for twenty first century directors like Steven Speilberg, George Lucas and James Cameron. Cameron has enjoyed the complete creative control over his project Avatar. Cameron brought sensibility in Avatar by depicting the issues of company’s treatment of Na’vi and tapped the awareness of individuals in global warming and frustration over the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The destruction of Na’vi’s home tree depicted the exploitation by capitalists. Although audiences left the theatres praising the 3-D cinematography, the trick to engross the viewers also laid in the use of music and sound effects interwoven with the Eco realism. It heightened the viewer’s emotional and ethical responses to characters and events (Taylor, 2013). Although the movie opens with a visual spectacle, it is accompanied by a voice of an unseen male character describing his wish of flying and be free. This voice designates the speaker as protagonist and his voice make us feel the sense of lack in him. The sound and image tracks work together to supply information regarding the narrative which will follow. The Na’avi tribe had their own language and all communication on Pandora was shown via subtitles in the film. Cameron hired Dr. Paul Frommer to engineer the language of the Na’avi tribe from the very beginning. The sound of futuristic machines used by the company was also worth mentioning. Conclusion: From the beautiful landscape of Pandora to rich regal blue skin of na’vi, to the techniques used in battle scenes, Avatar was a medium for visual pleasure. Visual imageries have played a significant role in the film. There was a visual similarity between the “cyro-pod” from which Jake, the protagonist emerges and the casket in which his brother’s body was cremated depicts the connection between them. Avatar has employed racial stereotypes about race and identity and offered strong female characterization. The critical reception of Avatar holds both awe and disappointment because although the film employs 3-D digital performance capture it has been caught hold by old fashioned story line (Grabiner, 2012). Thomas Schatz noted that commercialization of a film texts coincides with the shift from character to plot. The danger as per him is that the films are continuously depoliticized as noted in the film Avatar where colonialist and imperialist subtext has been negated by the focus on spectacle, action and special effects. The film’s narrative plays a secondary role and the complex characterization is replaced by spectacularisation of narrative (Valk & Arnold). References Grabiner, E. (2012) I see You: The Shifting Paradigms of James Cameron’s Avatar. McFarland & Co Inc Okun, J.A. & Zwerman, S.(2013). The VES Handbook of Visual Effects. Focal Press Straubhaar, J & LaRose, R. & Davenport, L.(2013). Media Now: Understanding Media, Culture, and Technology. Cengage Learning Taylor, B .(2013). Avatar and Nature Spirituality. Wilfrid laurier university press. Valk, M & Arnold, S.(2013). The Film Handbook. Routledge press. Read More