The Idea of an Essay, Volume 3

Research Writing 205 just beginning to embrace the addition of digital actors, the cost of the tools alone could total over five hundred thousand dollars. As advances were made in both the speed of computers and their size, the cost of tools went down dramatically. In most productions today, the cost of the required tools for one artist may only cost as little as two thousand dollars for both a good computer and the software (Tyler 2). With the increased availability of the tools, it is easier to find experienced digital artists. The large amount of qualified artists allows directors to get a production up and running quickly, thus reducing the overhead costs of the film. Opponents of virtual actors counter by acknowledging that the tools for making digital actors are decreasing in cost, but the expectations of both audiences and directors have become greater (Smith Digital 2). When digital humans where just getting their start, filmmakers could get away with only employing one or two people to create their effects. This was fine at the time because everyone gave digital actors some leeway in terms of how realistic they looked. Today though, large Hollywood movies employ teams of twenty to fifty people in order to make each virtual actor as realistic as possible. Smaller studios do not have this kind of money to pay for hyper- realistic digital humans and yet are still held to the same standard by moviegoers. Even though the amount of money large Hollywood studios are spending on the creation of super lifelike digital humans is quite extravagant, the reality of the situation is that they are paying for more than just the digital actors. While they are paying for the creation of virtual humans, they are also paying for the development of the technology.This means that as a blockbuster movie is produced, it is also pioneering new technology for digital actors. An example of this is how James Cameron, the director of Titanic and Avatar, creates his films. He begins with an idea of what his movie should look like and then starts producing the movie and the required technology at the same time (Thompson 2). As larger studios pioneer the latest technology, the older technology becomes cheaper and thus allows smaller studios to make increasingly realistic movies on a tighter budget, which helps the movie industry overall. Because of their sheer complexity, virtual actors are creating new job opportunities in the movie industry. The process of creating virtual humans is an intensive process that requires expertise inmany different areas such as animation, modeling, shading and rigging. Each of these areas contributes to the overall success of a virtual