The hit Disney movie "Moana" features stunning visual effects, including the animation of water to such a degree that it becomes a distinct character in the film.
UCLA mathematics professor Joseph Teran, a Walt Disney consultant on animated movies since 2007, is under no illusion that artists want lengthy mathematics lessons, but many of them realize that the success of animated movies often depends on advanced mathematics.
"In general, the animators and artists at the studios want as little to do with mathematics and physics as possible, but the demands for realism in animated movies are so high," Teran said. "Things are going to look fake if you don't at least start with the correct physics and mathematics for many materials, such as water and snow. If the physics and mathematics are not simulated accurately, it will be very glaring that something is wrong with the animation of the material."
Teran and his research team have helped infuse realism into several Disney movies, including "Frozen," where they used science to animate snow scenes. Most recently, they applied their knowledge of math, physics and computer science to enliven the new 3-D computer-animated hit, "Moana," a tale about an adventurous teenage girl who is drawn to the ocean and is inspired to leave the safety of her island on a daring journey to save her people.
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(Score: 3, Interesting) by DeathMonkey on Wednesday January 04 2017, @07:01PM
2016 Disney Theatrical releases
Feature films
January 29 - The Finest Hours
March 4 - Zootopia
April 15 - The Jungle Book
May 6 - Captain America: Civil War
May 27 - Alice Through the Looking Glass
June 17 - Finding Dory
July 1 - The BFG
August 12 - Pete's Dragon
September 2 - The Light Between Oceans
September 23 - Queen of Katwe
November 4 - Doctor Strange
November 23 - Moana
December 16 - Rogue One: A Star Wars Story