Detailed analysis of the production method of avatar special effects, how much did it cost to make a special effect of Avatar?

We all know the famous Hollywood film director James? Cameron is famous for spending money. All his films are big productions and big investments. Is that why he became James? When Cameron's Avatar was released, the excitement in the hearts of fans can be imagined. Avatar lived up to expectations and became a blockbuster. So how are the special effects of Avatar made?

Detailed explanation of the production method of avatar special effects

Avatar uses a lot of computer-generated animations, which must be photo-level. Cameron once said without exaggeration that Avatar is the most complicated film production in history. The two-and-a-half-hour movie has 1600 shots, while Avatar and? King Kong? (KingKong)？ Gollum? (Gollum) The difference is that it wants to make not one CG character, but hundreds of CG characters with photo realism.

At the beginning of the film preparation, Cameron did a special effects test, but the results of the multi-million-dollar test were not satisfactory. Is it made by computer? Avatar? Like a dead man, grotesque and terrible, Cameron recalled. That really scared me. It's terrible. Not Sam. That's a dead man. God, we did our best, and this is what we got?

Cameron's reaction has a technical term in the industry, called? Weird canyon? (uncannyvalley), originally used in robotics, refers to that when human beings face humanoid objects, as humanoid objects get closer and closer to human beings, human beings will have more and more positive emotions towards them. However, when this similarity is close to a certain degree, it is still possible to distinguish between true and false, and human emotional response will suddenly plummet, resulting in disgust. Which curve is reflected on the graph? Weird canyon? .

Cameron doesn't want the audience to have the same emotions as him. He hopes that the animated characters in Avatar can't tell the true from the false. Naturally, he found Weta Weita Digital Special Effects Company in New Zealand, which has made outstanding works in this field. Weita Weita Digital Special Effects Company is directed by The Lord of the Rings, Peter? In recent years, they have used motion capture combined with computer animation to create lifelike characters, the most amazing of which is the character created in The Lord of the Rings 2: The Twin Towers? Gollum? (Gollum) What about 2005? King Kong? Yes

Let's briefly introduce the technology of motion capture (also called performance capture). Motion capture technology requires an actor to put on a special costume with many sensing balls (also on his face). Through these sensing balls, the actor's expressions and actions are transmitted to the computer and attached to the virtual characters generated by computer animation. Motion capture is usually done in the studio, and actors can perform in the air without makeup. Because the actor's actions are recorded in 360 degrees, there is no position problem, and the actor needs to devote himself to the role and story.

More than 60% of the shots of Avatar are shot by motion capture technology, and the experience of motion capture by Weta Special Effects Company for many years makes Cameron trust it very much. However, because motion capture can't see the finished effect in real time, Cameron suggested that Weta let him see the final effect in real time like a normal movie. Weta Weita Special Effects Company subsequently developed one? Virtual camera? Although the system is called a camera, it is actually not a camera, but a temporary composite display system. The system is mainly composed of a computer and a liquid crystal display, which can instantly synthesize an actor's performance with a virtual computer background. The computer background here is still a rough sample, and the synthesized picture is similar to a computer game, but it allows Cameron to see the finished film at the scene of motion capture, so as to find problems in time and avoid rework in the future. This system is like a huge game engine, giving Cameron a lot of freedom. He can take pictures from any angle and control every cloud and every grass.

However, motion capture can only capture basic movements and general expressions, and many actors' very subtle facial expressions are lost in the process of capture. In order to make up for this, former filmmakers usually make up these subtle expressions by hand in later animation production, such as? Gollum? The whole facial expression is completely drawn by computer animation. But this time Cameron wants to restore the actor's performance to the greatest extent and minimize artificial animation. So, he regained the idea he drew on a napkin in 1995: the actor wore a helmet on his head, and a miniature camera was installed on the helmet. The camera reached in front of the actor's face and tracked every facial movement of the actor.

This device works well. It can track many subtle movements of actors, such as frowning, twitching nose, glancing at eyes, lips, teeth, tongue and chin, etc. 95% of actors' performances can be perfectly copied to their own animated characters, which was unimaginable in the past.

The animation models of characters obtained after motion capture are still very rough. Cameron sent them to Weta Digital Special Effects Company in New Zealand for further processing. In the end, Avatar reached the high level of Cameron. CG characters in movies are photo-realistic. Under the 3D stereoscopic effect, these characters look more realistic than those on ordinary 2D screens. The audience's brain will be fooled by these fake pictures and think it is true, not a picture or something.

How much did the special effects production of Avatar cost?

Just before the Lunar New Year in China in 2009, the movie Avatar was organized to watch in Guangdong Cinema yesterday. When you are worried that knowing the story in advance will affect the surprise of watching a movie, Avatar will tell you that this is not just a movie. When you think that 3D special effects are the biggest selling point of Avatar, you will find that this is just James? Cameron's tools for building virtual planets. When you think you have seen a movie, "Avatar" will subvert all your concept of watching movies.

Colorful plants shining all over, big tree seeds floating in the air, and four beasts with front legs and two hind legs? James. Cameron has been brewing for more than ten years and devoted himself to building a new world Pandora for four years. Last night, he came alive on the big screen in Hong Kong. The audience in Chinese mainland will see this colorful Pandora world in two weeks' time, 2065438+65438+20001October 4th.

This sci-fi blockbuster was personally convened by entertainment tycoon Murdoch, which cost 350 million yuan and the publicity cost was 65.438+0.5 billion yuan, making it the most expensive film production in the history of Avatar.

This sci-fi masterpiece is a blessing for fans, and its strong appeal is expected. James, director of Titanic? Cameron created a new world with $500 million? The stunt, coupled with the small-scale screening of 15-minute 3D footage in August this year, has made countless fans look forward to it. Our reporter followed James yesterday? Cameron took his new world Pandora to take risks and was the first to reveal this to you? Visual feast? .

No one can be like James? Cameron is crazy. He doesn't make many movies, but he is a rare money-burning king in the industry. 199 1 When shooting Terminator 2, James? Cameron set a budget level of 1 100 million dollars, which was astronomical at that time, but the global box office performance of 520 million made Colombian investors make a fortune, and since then it has also made James? Cameron's money burning trip was out of control: 1994 "True Lies" investment1.1.50 billion, with a global box office of 379 million; 1997 Titanic invested 200 million yuan, and the global box office was18.43 million, which made James? Cameron became the king of film history. Twelve years later, is he still? Always imitated, never surpassed? The peak of.

Trust James on this? Cameron knows better than anyone. The box office is not something that can be surpassed, and the rest is in the movie itself. Twelve years without making a feature film, not James? Cameron doesn't want to shoot, but he is looking for new ways to shoot movies. Moreover, for his astronomical investment budget, the film company should also look for feasible solutions like the enemy. When is James? While Cameron was wondering what new film technology should be used in his new play, Fox, the investor, was also holding a meeting to study how to attract investment and share the risks equally.

James. Cameron cooperated with two CGI studios in the industry to create brand-new computer special effects. In view of the increasing popularity of 3D cinemas, Cameron also spent150,000 yuan to develop a new photography system. At the same time, Fox reported to the superior news group that entertainment tycoon Murdoch personally called on investors from all walks of life to gather. As a result, the film cost of 350 million yuan and the publicity cost of 65.438+0.5 billion yuan made Avatar the most expensive film production in history.