Digital artistry has moved forward this past year, in virtually
every form, from still to motion pictures, video games to internet
chat. Some tools have advanced, and there are, of course, add-ons
created by the artists and enthusiasts who use the programs. One of
the more prevalent, 'in-your-face' showcases for digital art is the
movies. Animated features, a genre that most agree was recreated
with the film
Toy Story, have long been a showcase for
talented animation artists. Recently, from the revolutionary CGI of
Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within, to the absolutely
stunning digital wizardry of
Shrek, computer artistry is
recreating the way we see the imagination of others.
FF:TSW
for example, took the CGI magic common to the Final Fantasy game
series, and brought it to the big screen in a full-length feature.
The movie was technically brilliant, from the realistic modeling
and texturing of the characters, to the lighting and rendering of
the mind-boggling environments. The flaw typically recognized in
FF:TSW is the lip-synching, long acknowledged as a major
headache in the area of digital characters. This headache appeared
to have been quenched with what I consider to be one of the best
animated movies ever made:
Shrek. This film took "digital"
to a whole new level. With
Shrek, you can watch the movie
fifty times, and see something new that amazes you. I know, I have.
And the artists didn't limit their wizardry to just the main
characters, or one or two main sets...They covered
everything. Watch when Shrek and Donkey are walking through
tall grass. Not only does the grass bend away as they move through
it, it bends
back after they pass.
That's art. Every
strand of Donkey's fur moving in the breeze of Shrek's 'really
scary' roar - that's
unquestionably art. And that's just
when CGI is used exclusively to create a feature film. What about
where CGI is used to enhance live-action films? Films like
The
Matrix made great use of CGI techniques of the time, and
current films such as
Lord of the Rings do the same, meshing
dazzling computer imagery with live-action so seamlessly that you
often can't tell the difference. Sure, there were a few
disappointments (
Dungeons & Dragons springs immediately to
mind), but even those had some wonderful CGI work (just not much of
it, like the beholders in
D&D for example). What's coming
from the film industry? Most likely CGI films and effects that are
even more realistic than ever before, as the technology and the
techniques become more refined. The first company that comes to
mind is LucasArts, and the continuation of the prequel films. You
can be assured that we're going to see a lot of CGI wizardry in
Episode II and III, including effects and characters that will
continue to push the envelope...After all, that's what LucasArts
does best. Other companies will follow suit, with films like
Matrix II and the remaining Lord of the Rings movies, as
well as films like
Spiderman and the
X-Men sequel
putting heavy demands on the industry, in response to increasing
demands from discerning moviegoers. And what about the software
that we 'regular' folks use? You can bet that software packages are
going to get better and better, allowing us to edge that much
closer to realism. Look at some of the still art created with the
current incarnation of Poser, version 4.03. A quick cruise through
the gallery reveals a dedication to the pursuit of realistic
characters and settings. Texture artists are leaning heavily
towards photo-based textures, and putting incredible amounts of
work into highly detailed bump maps to increase the realism in pore
and vascular structure. Import Poser figures into programs such as
Bryce or Vue D'esprit, which excel in landscapes, and the resulting
realism is staggering. 3D renders approaching photographic quality
are already out there, and it's certain there will only be
improvements in both the tools and the artists in the months to
come. But still media and motion pictures aren't the only areas
where CGI is advancing. Video games on both the computer and
console platforms are making better use of sophisticated graphics
work. One of the most popular on-line games,
EverQuest,
revamped their game engine to take advantage of many new graphics
capabilities, much to the dismay of Windows 95 users (as Win95
doesn't support DirectX 8.1). Reports on games such as
Unreal
II,
Doom III, and many others are revealing truly
amazing screen shots, making use of high-polygon digital modeling,
high-detail texturing of both the worlds and the characters, and
full utilization of hardware-based effects such as specular
lighting and vertex blending. Companies like Curious Labs are also
introducing products like Avatar Lab to bring a higher-end look to
common on-line activities like chatting, in conjunction with
Adobe's new Atmosphere program (still in Beta as of this writing).
As the year progresses, there are quite a few companies and
products to keep an eye on, for not only the products themselves,
but for add-ons and plug-ins as well. Poser 5 from Curious Labs is
already a hot topic in the art forums, and you can be sure you'll
see new versions or significant additions to programs such as
Adobe's Photoshop, E-On Software's Vue D'esprit, Corel's Bryce,
Rhino, and the ever-popular 3D Studio MAX from Discreet. And that's
not just commercial stuff, but a wellspring of user-made items as
well, which sometimes rival even the best commercial releases. Yes,
it's a good time to be an artist...and it promises to only get
better from here. Keep reading this column over future issues to
get the inside scoop from folks in the business of making art
products, and folks in the business of making art. -Happy
Rendering!
About
David Hebbe (ChromeTiger): I'm what most people call a
'jack-of-all-trades'...I've held positions as everything from a
cobbler (shoe maker, not the dessert) to a Technical Support
Supervisor for a major computer manufacturer. The one thing that
has remained constant through every profession is my love of art
and multimedia. I'm currently working on several artistic pursuits,
including my position as Digital Art Director for Brass Ball
Comics, home of 'Bubba the Redneck Werewolf', a new small press
comic arriving in stores later this month...check it out! See you
in the funny books! David 'ChromeTiger' Hebbe
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