Too Real Means Too Creepy in New Disney Animation
Computer animation has a problem: When it gets too realistic, it starts creeping people out.
Most recently, moviegoers complained about the near-realistic depiction of humans in Disney's 3-D flick "Mars Needs Moms."
A theory called the "uncanny valley" says we tend to feel attracted to inanimate objects with human traits, the way a teddy bear or a rag doll seems cute. Our affection grows as an object looks more human. But if it looks too human, we suddenly become repulsed.
Instead of seeing what's similar, we notice the flaws — and the motionless eyes or awkward movements suddenly make us uncomfortable.
"Mars" may have plunged to the bottom of this valley of fear.
"People always comment on things feeling strangely dead around the eyes," said Chuck Sheetz, an animation director of "The Simpsons" and a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles. "If it gets too literal, it starts to feel false or has a strange effect."
Skin texture that is slightly off can especially leave people feeling unsettled, said Patrick Markey, a psychologist and director of Villanova University's Interpersonal Research Laboratory.
The near-realistic animation style championed by producer Robert Zemeckis uses motion-capture technology, where actors are covered with dots and skin suits and have their performances captured on computer. The dots provide the frame, and the rest is filled in with computerized graphics.
AP
In this film publicity image released by Walt Disney Studios, the character Milo's Mom, voiced by Joan Cusack, is shown in a scene from "Mars Needs Moms." (AP Photo/Walt Disney Studios) Close"Mars" creates humans that are more realistic and detailed than Zemeckis' earlier attempts in such movies as "Beowulf" and "The Polar Express" — which were also criticized for inviting this discomfort. The greater detail might have made things worse.
Doug McGoldrick, who took his two daughters to see the movie, said the faces of the main characters "were just wrong." Their foreheads were lifeless and plastic-looking, "like they used way too much botox or something," said the 41-year-old photographer in the Chicago suburb of River Forest, Ill.
Marc Kelley, a 32-year-old pastor in Allegan, Mich., who went with his two young children, said he found the renditions of characters "all annoying in their own way."
Indeed, when the mother of the main character Milo mentioned the word "zombies" at the start of the movie, it conjures up a feeling that the characters themselves are undead.
Animation experts say the key to success is to be only authentic enough to tug at our heart strings.
The best example of this was "Avatar," the 2009 blockbuster that made $2.8 billion in theaters worldwide. The humanoid, but blue-bodied Na'vi were alien enough not to trigger our inner rejection mechanism.
"My own personal opinion is try to stay away from photo-real with a human," said Greg Philyaw, the business development director at Giant Studios, which captured the performance of human actors for their digital re-creation in "Avatar." "Subconsciously you know what you're looking at isn't quite right."
The Walt Disney Co., by its actions, has already voted against the super-real animation format
Last March, it said it would shut down the Zemeckis-run company ImageMovers Digital, which made "Mars," to cut costs. Several months ago, Disney also nixed a plan to fund and distribute Zemeckis' "Yellow Submarine," a half-finished work he is now free to shop to other studios.
Disney would not comment for this story, and Zemeckis declined interview requests through an agent.
It is very interesting in the sense that something too real or life-like is not appealing considering that animation has really developed over the years. Maybe this means that the world just would not be ready for robots that look like humans. Actually, I think the small outcry over this proves that. How weird would it be to not know if it was a robot walking the street and you didn't know it? All right I know this may be taking it a bit far but with all the crazy technology we have gained over the last decade it could really just be around the corner.
As Nakishima states only be as real to tug at the heart strings is a relative way to explain it but I do completely agree with it. This may be a stretch but look at Dobby from Harry Potter, he looks real but not too real and you really do feel for the poor little house elf. Maybe overtime, this idea of too real will fade but in an industry designed to entertain the public, you have to give them what they want.
Crazy, I can't even imagine having robots that you couldn't distinguish from real humans. That would just be super freaky! This makes sense to me though, I tend too like real actors or very clearly animated characters.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with Dobby, great example.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI saw an interview of James Cameron concerning his movie Avatar. He said that he tried to make the characters look human-like but not to get to that point where people get repulsed by them because they are too human but just off. Larger eyes and bigger mouths usually are tricks to make animated people look more attractive. You see it a lot in Pixar and Dreamworks movies. This is definitely interesting, and it's cool that our brains can pick up on the subtle hints of liveliness, or lack thereof, in eyes and faces. Nice post!
ReplyDelete