Monday, March 01, 2010

Debate: Acting or Animation?

An old debate has been re-ignited about the use of motion capture and animation in live-action films surrounding the Academy Awards that will be taking place this month. It began awhile back with Andy Serkis' performances for the character Gollum in 'The Lord of the Rings' Trilogy, and is now centered on the performances of the actors, notably Zoe Saldana, in James Cameron's 'Avatar.' The question is whether digital performances are worthy of recognition in the category of best actor/actress or best supporting actor/actress nominations.

James Cameron has been up and front about how his actor's performances were the exact same as those you see in the film that make the CG avatars and Na'vi come to life and thus they ought to be recognized. However the Avademy Awards have igored these claims, and many argue that despite what Cameron says, the performances of the actors have been altered to suit the alien designs of the CG characters and thus are ineligible. The line between the digital and the real are almost on the point of disappearing; so many argue that in light of such technology an entirely new category of awards for motion and performance capture ought to be made. Where do you stand on this topic?

An interesting article dealing with this subject has been written by Kristin Thompson with links to other interesting news and articles. I highly recommend it! You can find it here.