Silly Idea from the Future

[Winter]

To start this all off here's a video from The Mandalorian.


youtu.be/Ufp8weYYDE8

And now to continue here's a scene from Incredibles 2, skips to 1:30


youtu.be/Gqp1P_NQ7yI

If you could go back in time and tell filmmakers that something like the Volume, as the cast and crew call it, would be used in place of green screens it would sound like something out of science fiction as it would sound like you were talking about a Holodeck from Star Trek. But it's something that is a real game changer as it will help save time and money for filming while also helping actors in seeing their surroundings.

Hell, even things like lightsabers that actually glow on set is something that also helps save time and money as you no longer need to add in the light of every reflective surface while also trying to illuminate the actors with artificial light. It's truly amazing to think about that a scene like this.


youtu.be/OAAkTDr2wmk

Would have been a Nightmare to shoot in post production and cost the show God knows how much money. But most of that was done on set with little CGI in later. As technology advances things can and do get better and the silly idea I had that relates to the Incredibles is how much smoother filming will progress when invisibility tech is made.

While the scene with Vi is impressive in and of itself for amazing the hair effects have gotten what I want to focus on is the camera angle. You have Bob in frame with a mirror right in front of him before he turns around and we see leave. A shot like this can be done in live action but the angle would have to be different.

A good example of this is this scene from The Wrath of Khan.


youtu.be/lCs6fhuc6mI

Note that the camera isn't directly behind Kirk as we see him in the mirror because then we would see the camera and thus the illusion would be broken. You can work around that and get a VERY impressive shot like this scene from Contact.


youtu.be/ZD0_5HFMPIg

But this takes time and a LOT of effort to pull off and is meant to be impressive and not something that's just meant to be two characters talking. Going back to the mirror talking scenes the reason this shot is done is so we can see both characters in frame which allows a shot to go on without needing to cut between characters. But again, the camera has to be out of frame and that's easy to do in Animation but harder to pull off in live action. Even with today's tech were we can remove anything we don't want that still takes time & money and it's not always going to work.

But imagine if you could have the camera and crew anywhere you wanted. Imagine being able to get angles like what we have in Incredibles 2 in live action with no fancy camera angles or needing to remove people later in post-production. Because they're there but they are invisible.

Think the suit from The Invisible Man from last year only real and being used for something as simple as getting the best camera angle with the film crew, director and camera gear all wrapped up. Now shots that would have been a nightmare could be a lot easier now because you don't have to worry about the mic being in frame or the crew being seen in the reflection.

Silly idea, or terrifying one if you watched 2020's The Invisible Man, but still the idea along, purely from a film-making angle is enticing. Time and money saved and now you can get better angles that would have been a nightmare to shot original.

And again, remember, something like the Volume was something would have sounded right out of a sci-fi story.

[technobabbler]

within the next twenty years (to be conservative), the tech will be good/cheap enough for animation/CGI to be indistinguishable from live action.

watching a "live action" tv series with no human actors will seem normal.

[ProfessorDetective]

within the next twenty years (to be conservative), the tech will be good/cheap enough for animation/CGI to be indistinguishable from live action.

watching a "live action" tv series with no human actors will seem normal.

Eh, we'll still need voice actors... at least, for a while yet. If voice synths get any better, though...

[clearspira]

I like the idea of replacing everyone in Hollywood with CGI people. This might be the last generation of self-righteous, mega-rich Hollywood actors who think themselves oh-so-morally-superior to everyone else. They'll be relegated solely to moderate budget indies. Celebrity culture itself is going to look a lot different in a few years time and the world will be better for it.

[Winter]

I like the idea of replacing everyone in Hollywood with CGI people. This might be the last generation of self-righteous, mega-rich Hollywood actors who think themselves oh-so-morally-superior to everyone else. They'll be relegated solely to moderate budget indies. Celebrity culture itself is going to look a lot different in a few years time and the world will be better for it.

Yeah, that's never going to happen. Putting aside the fact that we'll always need actors even if they are just voicing the characters and they are ALWAYS going to be paid a ridicules amount of money so long as the project they work on is successful, people LIKE live action. We like seeing something that is really there because it draws us into the illusion and something being really there with real people make that all the more engaging.

The self-righteous, mega-rich Hollywood actors who think themselves oh-so-morally-superior to everyone else have been around since the creation of the story and will continue to be around long after we are all dead and our bones turn to dust. Just like there will always be fans who are hostile and think sending death threats to creators who are just doing their jobs and are regular people who are usually really nice is a good idea.

Just like there are good people who make movies for the sheer joy of it and to bring joy to other people and just like there are fans who love the work and just love the world and characters that are created. Technological marches, the world changes and we change with it and in the end there are only 2 things that remain consistent in human history.

There will always be idiots who think they know better then everyone else and there will always be good people who are doing the best they can.

There will always be people in Hollywood who think they are better then everyone else, that hasn't changed in since we first learned how to talk it won't change now. People are people, it's just how our crazy world works.

[technobabbler]

Celebrity culture itself is going to look a lot different in a few years time and the world will be better for it.

Yeah, that's never going to happen.

There will always be celebrities but look at pop music/rock. Arguably, the pop music stars of today have nowhere near the cultural impact of Elvis, the Beatles, Michael Jackson. I could be sitting next to Michael B Jordan or BTS on a plane and would have no idea.

That'll probably be where Hollywood is headed. Still plenty of C-list niche celebrities, but fewer A-listers because the general public's viewing habits are way more diverse than 40-60 years ago.

[clearspira]

Celebrity culture itself is going to look a lot different in a few years time and the world will be better for it.

Yeah, that's never going to happen.

There will always be celebrities but look at pop music/rock. Arguably, the pop music stars of today have nowhere near the cultural impact of Elvis, the Beatles, Michael Jackson. I could be sitting next to Michael B Jordan or BTS on a plane and would have no idea.

That'll probably be where Hollywood is headed. Still plenty of C-list niche celebrities, but fewer A-listers because the general public's viewing habits are way more diverse than 40-60 years ago.

Yep, great example. How many singers whose careers started in the 21st century will still be household names in 50 years time? As in ''children, parents and grandparents all know who you are talking about.'' Because honestly I am having a hard time picking any.

My best bet would probably be Adele going by her album sales. Taylor Swift and Amy Winehouse with an outside chance. I was going to say Eminem, but no, he started in the 1990s according to Wiki.

Point is that whilst there are stars in the music industry today, there are few megastars. There is no 2021 equivalent of Freddie Mercury, Elvis, Jackson, Beatles.

[Winter]

Celebrity culture itself is going to look a lot different in a few years time and the world will be better for it.

Yeah, that's never going to happen.

There will always be celebrities but look at pop music/rock. Arguably, the pop music stars of today have nowhere near the cultural impact of Elvis, the Beatles, Michael Jackson. I could be sitting next to Michael B Jordan or BTS on a plane and would have no idea.

That'll probably be where Hollywood is headed. Still plenty of C-list niche celebrities, but fewer A-listers because the general public's viewing habits are way more diverse than 40-60 years ago.

Yep, great example. How many singers whose careers started in the 21st century will still be household names in 50 years time? As in ''children, parents and grandparents all know who you are talking about.'' Because honestly I am having a hard time picking any.

My best bet would probably be Adele going by her album sales. Taylor Swift and Amy Winehouse with an outside chance. I was going to say Eminem, but no, he started in the 1990s according to Wiki.

Point is that whilst there are stars in the music industry today, there are few megastars. There is no 2021 equivalent of Freddie Mercury, Elvis, Jackson, Beatles.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I've heard this argument before.

"There's no 'True' art these days" "No one remembers anything released over the last (add number of years/decades her)" "Soon will have no need for actual people making (insert whatever here)" and my personal favorite "Has it really aged well, I'm sure it will be forgotten in a few more years".

The last one is said with something that has been around and is still influencing/inspiring us for either several decades or literal CENTURIES!!! The Odyssey, A Christmas Carol, the DC and Marvel Universe, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings even something as silly as Beauty and the Beast which is literally a tale as old as time (the concept not the original BATB story) is something EVERYONE says is going to be forgotten in just a few short years and they are ALWAYS proven wrong.

And everyone always says nothing made at this time will be remembered because it isn't as good as it was back in the old days because vague reasons and because I said so. For all my issues in regards to the Star Wars Disney Sequel Trilogy and thinking it won't stand the test of time it WILL still be part of our history and people WILL still be talking about it for years to come. This is how the world works, we always say something isn't as good as the good old days but what people always forget is that what is seen as a classic now was largely something many didn't see as anything special and it ALWAYS comes back.

[Riedquat]

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I've heard this argument before.
...

There's some truth to that but it's also an over-simplification IMO. With more and more out there there's simply less and less that stands out and excites. Not none, but less. It's been going on for a while - look at the cultural impact TOS has had over later Treks (TNG had some, but I'd argue the others, very little). You can get the quality out there but not the stand-out wow factor. It becomes much, much harder to stand out. In different areas it's even longer - less impact from literature as there are more and more books, and most of the best-known composers go back further still.

[Winter]

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I've heard this argument before.
...

There's some truth to that but it's also an over-simplification IMO. With more and more out there there's simply less and less that stands out and excites. Not none, but less. It's been going on for a while - look at the cultural impact TOS has had over later Treks (TNG had some, but I'd argue the others, very little). You can get the quality out there but not the stand-out wow factor. It becomes much, much harder to stand out. In different areas it's even longer - less impact from literature as there are more and more books, and most of the best-known composers go back further still.

Heard this one too, believe me, there is Nothing you can add to this argument that I haven't heard over the course of my life and all these arguments have been said. And in terms of stories that have had a notable impact in just the last few decades here's a short list.

Avatar: The Last Airbender
The Legend of Korra
Steven Universe
Mass Effect
Dragon Age
Tomb Raider
Breaking Bad
The Marvel Cinematic Universe
Wonder Woman
Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice
Reboot
Get Out
The Clone Wars
Inside Out
Soul
Frozen
Frozen II
Game of Thrones
Shadow of the Colossus
Assassin's Creed
God of War
Ducktales
Gravity Falls
The Owl House
Adventure Time
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
Power Rangers
The Dark Knight Trilogy
The Mandalorian
Lois & Clark
She-Ra and the Princesses of Power
Into the Spider-Verse
Dragon Ball
Dragon Ball Z
Dragon Ball Z Abridged
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Kingdom Hearts
Mario
Kirby
Sonic the Hedgehog
Crash Bandicoot
Uncharted
The Last of Us
Jak and Daxter
Tangled
Moana
Resident Evil
Dark Souls
Demon Souls
Bloodborne
Rayne
Prince of Persia
Incredibles
The Mighty Ducks
Persona
Your Name
Spirited Away
Sam Raimi's Spider-Man Trilogy
Inception
Hamilton
Madoka Magica
Evangelion
Amphibia
Lilo and Stitch
Gargoyles
And likely to join the ranks Raya and the Last Dragon

Yes, this is the SHORT list. To name every film, TV show, game, novel, comic and play that has had a notable impact over the last 30+ years would take so long that we would be here until the end of the year. The number of classic stories released year after year come out at the same pace they always have. Sure there are more stories released but that doesn't mean anything in the long run.

Do you think any remembers The Taming of the Shrew because it's a classic that stood the test of time? No, they talk about it because it was written by William Shakespeare. Do you think the works of Antonio Salieri was slowly forgotten over time like the movie Amadeus claimed? Nope, it's still talked about and listened to years later despite it not being as popular as Mozart's works.

Hell, Mozart is a perfect example as while he was popular at the time he was seen as a one trick pony and was as childish and as annoying as the film presents him as and the Emperor did famously say that his music had to many notes in his song. And many felt that he would be forgotten in time... You can see how well THAT prediction went.

I mean, look at the first era of cinema, it's a collection of shorts films many of which only lasted a few seconds because that's all that could be filmed at the time. It was basically Tik Tok and we're still talking about that era of cinema despite it having VERY Few stories that could be considered ground breaking or classic. And yes, the argument that cinema would never go anywhere had the same arguments we're having about stories now.

So, when I say I've seen these arguments before I MEAN IT!

We cannot see the future but we do know that past and those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it. And the arguments that I've heard now are going to be repeated in a few years from now because after a certain point we all start looking over everything that's come out and assume the Golden Age of Stories have passed us and we will only see a few bright spots but the truth of the matter is stories are getting better.

We're expanding our skills as new ways of filming become available and sure, will hit a few duds we always do but we will continue to get classic stories that stand the test of time and others that seem to go unnoticed but have more of an impact then many realize.

Shows like Babylon 5, The Prisoner and Deep Space 9 all have had more of an impact on pop-culture then many seem to realize. B5, for example, is getting a HD remaster and will be released on HBO Max and will be sold on Amazon and iTunes. Not bad for a show that's almost 30 years old.