Sunday 20 April 2014

The Overuse Of CGI In Film

By Rebecca Mills


CGI is, in my view, one of the most important components to consider in the way of contemporary film-making. After all, it is able to bring life to special features that might not have that degree of life otherwise. There are so many ways in which it can be used, whether it is the creation of characters that cannot be seen in reality or bringing life to landscapes that are able to prove aesthetically pleasing. With that said, is it possible that CGI can be argued to be one of the most overused features in film?

On the surface, this appears to be the case. It's interesting because CGI is almost like the film and TV equivalent of the seasons changing; it's just something that we have come to expect. When we see impressive visuals like Iron Man, in the third movie of his trilogy, descending from the sky in order to save a number of civilians, we don't say, "Look at how fake this appears." CGI is involved but it's incorporated in such a way that we don't try to search for a wizard behind the curtain.

You can look at CGI in a movie almost like whipped cream set atop a bowl of iced cream. It is a nice feature to have, of course, but it's not something that should be considered the focal point. What happens when there is too much whipped cream, though? It can become over-saturated, which is what I feel as though has been the issue of CGI in regards to film and related forms of media. While some parties can make CGI look authentic, this is not the case for everyone.

It's easy to say that CGI is oftentimes utilized poorly, even now when it's been around for a number of years. For example, upon watching the first "Twilight" movie, I did not care for many of the visuals. At first, the paler colors were interesting, as I thought they added to the somber atmosphere of the film in general. However, once the CGI werewolves made their presence, I found myself taken out of the experience. Yes, werewolves are creations of fiction but the movie-going audience should not be made aware of this.

If "Twilight" wanted to be self-aware, I would have understood this but this was not the case. This is an example of CGI not being utilized to its fullest, or even halfway, which is a crime when considering that there are films which are able to use it amazingly. There are many CGI-related effects that can come across as fake, regardless of how good a particular film or television show is. Hopefully, in time, more film creators and studios will be able to incorporate CGI to where it no longer appears overly synthetic.




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