If you've seen "Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace," you've already met Jar Jar Binks. And despite his lifelike presence, you probably also know Jar Jar is the first digital character with a starring role in an epic film. He's a cinematic oddity, but also an ethical problem, raising all sorts of questions about what happens when technology converges with the performing arts.
We've already witnessed the cinematic wonders of digital imagery -- the airborne cow in "Twister;" the dinosaurs in “Jurassic Park;” Tom Hanks' interaction with John F. Kennedy in “Forrest Gump.” But the proliferation of digitized characters raises some provocative questions. Can we next expect a cast of “perfect” digitally rendered Baywatch babes? An additional “Friend” or “ER” resident without salary demands? A James Bond who never ages, or a movie release in 2002 starring resurrected images of Marilyn Monroe and James Dean?
It's hard to know just how close Hollywood is to achieving these goals. The digitized scenes in “Titanic” of the sinking ship suggest we are already there. And some in the entertainment industry view the future of digital characters with guarded skepticism.
“I don't think we are that far away from it,” says Screen Actors Guild spokesman Rafe Greenlee. “We are concerned and monitoring changes in technology, but we don't think digitized synthespians will be taking over the screen tomorrow ... it is an erroneous assumption that overlooks the contribution of the actor that creates the spark, that creates a character audiences relate to.”
Virtual stardom
And Greelee might have a point. Even if fully digital actors begin popping up in sitcoms and films, will people actually accept them? Or is there something so sacred about the art of acting that it could hamper computer-generated images quest for stardom? Jar Jar's reviews haven't been all that great. “Sorry Jar Jar, They Hate You,” was the headline the New York Post put on its reader review of the “Phantom Menace.” One armchair critic called Jar Jar a “bit annoying, a minor detraction from the overall experience.” Another characterized Jar Jar as “horrible.” Yet another wanted to “shoot Jar Jar Binks and his entire bumbling, annoying species.”
Scott Billups, writer, director, and owner of Electronic Sandbox, a digital-effects production house, says many people possess the technology to build synthetic characters. But how convincing are the digital characters? At this point it becomes a question of capturing the finely tuned and subtle nuances of human expression, says Billups, who has created a sophisticated, synthetic Marilyn Monroe. He says there are more polygons in his digital Marilyn's expressive face, than in the entire bodies of dinosaurs in “Jurassic Park,” which were capable only of binary movement.
It took a lot of human research to build a virtual Marilyn. Billups interviewed people who knew her, men who had affairs with her, and motion-captured some of the best impersonators in the business, while attempting to identify body movements most evocative of what we identify with Marilyn. “It's cheaper to feed them than to build them,” he says.
And let's not forget that even Jar Jar Binks was helped along by actor Ahmed Best, who was selected by Lucas to participate in on-set performances that would make Jar Jar appear more real for the cast and crew.
And the Oscar goes to...
What will happen when Hollywood perfects this process of digitizing people? It doesn't seem much of a stretch to imagine actors concerned about digital eugenics in the not too distant future, given the premium on physical perfection in Hollywood. When a casting director fails to identify the “perfect” lead, will he or she, go literally to the drawing board and design characters with defect-free images? Could a compelling performance by a digital actor such as Jar Jar earn a nomination for best supporting actor? Also interesting to contemplate is how the developments in technology will continue to redefine the Hollywood power structure and bifurcate the fruits of fame. Ingenious special effects artists will reap the financial rewards, while the works of art they create enjoy the coveted celebrity status.
Raising the dead
And while we are on the topic of digital Hollywood, let's not forget that we are already resurrecting stars for commercial purposes. Fred Astaire dances with a modern-day vacuum cleaner in Dirt Devil advertisements, John Wayne pitches Coors beer, and Elvis Presley sells pizzas. The raises a raft of related ethical and legal considerations: Who is responsible for providing consent? What qualifies as fair use of a deceased performer's persona?
Fred Astaire's widow, Robyn Astaire, is pushing proposed legislation in California that gives enhanced protection to artists and their heirs beyond-the-grave performances. In addition to removing categorical exemptions that permit the use of celebrity images, the bill brings the protective duration of a performer's image in line with current federal copyright law, extending the protection to the lifetime of a performer, plus 70 years.
Under the proposed law, the use of images of deceased performers remains with heirs to the extent the use is protected by the First Amendment. “It is all very straightforward,” says Astaire. “Technology is irrelevant. Decisions about the persona and image to be used are a matter of consent.”
What would Elvis Do?
That all seems well and good. But how do we really know what endorsements or entertainment ventures a dead performer would want to pursue? We aren't just talking about using clips from old performances, but the full integration of a moment from the past into present and future filmed exchanges. One might argue there is a visceral distinction between souvenir mugs bearing Elvis' visage and “endorsed by the Elvis estate,” and digitally resurrecting the gyrating performer to sell pizzas. The latter suggests a connection between the performer and the product, and in reality involves a script decision. One wonders if such personal performance decisions can ever be abdicated to a third party, and how these decisions might be complicated by financial incentives.
