In the beginning, the voiceover of this film says that we are now at a place where we can conjure anything with software. That was back in 2017, and four years later this argument has only strengthened. We now have deepfake videos that can fool experts and create a record of events that didn’t actually happen. I didn’t realize that CGI had been around for so long, and it was cool to see a historical background on this artform.
I wish I had the talent and skills to create CGI effects, because it gives you the ultimate control as a creator. If you can imagine it, you can make it live in the digital realm – or the “Uncanny Valley.” I remember learning about recreation in documentary filmmaking during my first semester, and I didn’t understand how a film could still be considered a documentary if any material was not a “document” of real life. However, my understanding of what is “real” has changed. We all experience and remember events differently, even if we take part in them together. Thus, a documentary can be expected to frame an event as interpreted by the director. CGI can play a role in this.
Near the end of the video essay, Alan Warburton shares some work of CGI artists who are doing experimental artwork, rather than recreating a physical world. This is where it starts to get really interesting, and encapsulates what I find fascinating about CGI – the ability to create a fantastical world that can be experienced by others. He believes this is the future of CGI. Four years later, and we now have CGI influencers on Instagram. These computer generated celebrities enter into relationships, earn money through sponsorships, and inspire and offend millions of followers. Lil Miquela is probably one of the first major ones. It’s no longer the Uncanny Valley, it’s the Uncanny Garden of Eden. If we combine this video essay with last week’s readings on AI, the future of CGI is when humans are no longer necessary, and the computers can generate creative imagery on their own. Did we look at this New York Times article in our class? https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/11/21/science/artificial-intelligence-fake-people-faces.html I can’t remember. It’s such a fascinating example of what computers can do on their own. According to this article, there are now companies out there that sell fake people, entirely computer generated. If Lil Miquela can have a boyfriend, and convince millennials to buy Ouai shampoo, think about the possibilities for CGI, when combined with AI.
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