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Disney and LucasFilms will reportedly use computer generated imagery to digitally recreate Grand Moff Tarkin, the character Peter Cushing played in Star Wars back in 1977. Cushing died at age 81 in 1994:
A source told the Daily Mail that Disney and LucasFilms are using CGI to bring Grand Moff Tarkin back to life for the spin-off film which is centred on a back story about Darth Vader.
Cushing starred in many of the Hammer Horror films with Christopher Lee, including Dracula and Dr Frankenstein. He also appeared in two Doctor Who films, based on the BBC sci-fi series.
CGI technicians have been particularly challenged in recreating his legs and feet, because they never appeared on camera in the original film. As his character was a Galactic Imperial officer, his uniform included tight riding boots, which Cushing complained were uncomfortable. So director George Lucas gave him permission to wear slippers and instructed the camera operators to only film him from above the knees. Original footage is vital in the process of computer generating real people, to ensure that it appears as accurate as possible.
With the power of CGI, Tarkin/Cushing can be made to leap over railings, dodge blaster fire in mid-air, and high five Jar Jar Binks.
Original Submission
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Tork on Friday August 28 2015, @02:51PM
Even if a magic 'give me a realistic mocap stitch' button ever did exist, that still only accounts for a portion of what you see in a scene. No, acting will never be obsolete, just like cameras failed to make painting obsolete.
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(Score: 2) by deimtee on Saturday August 29 2015, @08:04AM
Currently, it is all human controlled, computer assisted. You're right that they will need actors for a while.
But what about when you start applying Watson level semantic understanding to the computers? Movie budgets of hundreds of megabucks allow for that.
Options like;
- have the computer create mo-cap from past film. If it gets smart enough, it won't need the ping-pong balls.
- Even before that, have Amazons mechanical turk apply virtual ping-pong balls to existing existing film - Mo-Cap of Fred and Ginger dancing!
... and the tools to modify them have never been better.
But they will never be worse than they are now, and the libraries will never be smaller.
If you cough while drinking cheap red wine it really cleans out your sinuses.
(Score: 2) by Tork on Saturday August 29 2015, @05:24PM
If you really think computers will ever be able to do what will draw people to see a show try watching Whose Line is it Anyway some time.
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