Session 1: Digital Actors and Locations
David Anderman, Lucasfilm
Keith Boesky, Boesky and Company
Professor Leslie Kurtz, UC Davis School of Law
(moderated by Riley Russell, SCEA)
read on for my notes from the session . . . apologies for typos!
Kurtz mentions "Synthespians" - synthetic actor, including digital images derived from humans
Boesky points out that no one understands the value of synthesbians. Eidos had a proposal from CAA in 1997 to represent for Tomb Raider film which turned into them representing Lara Croft as first digital actor. CAA said "we don't represent cartoons." Square released FF Spirits Within and wanted to do marketing, Boesky wanted to promote Ai as separate person/character and make a boy band within FF games. Square didn't like either idea. "Nobody has any interest in marketing avatars."
Eidos first looked at Tomb Raider as a digital movie, but too expensive and insufficient audience. Plus, this allows Eidos to separate Lara into different characters for different markets => separate revenue streams.
Question from Riley: what do you call synthesbians? Anderman calls them digital characters, Boesky says Hollywood has no name for them. Nobody understands that people own motion data (say from Polar Express) and that Hollywood doesn't get the ability to separate motion from likeness.
Anderman points out that Lucasfilm takes digital characters very seriously and Lucas focuses on use of digital likenesses, motion data, etc.
Boesky: Smart producers do cover motion and likenesses (always in the game industry) but movies don't. Often use the leverage of likenesses to get voice work. Talent agencies again have no awareness of digital assets.
Anderman points out that Zemeckis gets digital actors. Anderman demonstrates how far we have come (showing only Lucasfile work - Young Sherlock Holmes through Pirates of the Caribbean)
Anderman talks about the key use of CGI in movies. Talks about mocap ("performance capture" in Polar Express) and how that has refined. Goal is to recreate human activity within movies -- goal is 100% synthetic. Talks about the importance of dinosaurs being real to the viewers. Talks about step of tying Sean Connery's voice into the dragon in Dragonheart. Also, importance of actor motion while animating digital characters. Uses Shrek example of Mike Myers coming through so that people are cued to think that Shrek is funny.
Anderman talks about the uncanny valley (although he doesn't name it) that Polar Express fell deep into. Says that Polar Express originally wanted to make the movie look like real people, then backed off of position when reviews called it "creepy."
Noted that Star Wars Episode 1 had 2200 fx shots (out of 2400). Episode 2 first film shot completely digitally. Went into detail of how Christopher Lee's head was connected to digital actors. Concluded with likenesses moving into games. Hidden feature of Han Solo and Indiana Jones in Mercenaries - Boesky chimes in with the fact that these likeness rights certainly don't protect Harrison Ford.
Boesky - how do we turn digital characters into actors in their own right? Wants to think about T1000 robot playing other robots. Liked the fact that Lara could be used in many different contexts without the problems of real human actors. Who owns these characters? The same animator who did the dinosaurs did the pirates.
Russell asks whether this is any different than making cartoons? Boesky sees these as different from cartoons, because he wants them owned by the creators. How can the characters be used for hire in different contexts?
Kurtz - points out that as soon as voice, etc, start being used, then the creators don't necessarily have moral rights since ownership is no longer clear. Who would own the rights if someone wanted to make digital Marilyn Monroe starring with young Sean Connery?
Russell started talking about a replacement character in Hot Shots golf. What is important to know about a character before it gets used? Who made it?
Boesky tells story about Angel Studios and Mr. Bones using copyright to block shipment when Sega wanted to keep all rights.
Except that "Pete" was copied from a next door neighbor of the vendor, so Pete looks like the character created by the artist. Does Pete have a right to publicity? General agreement that right to publicity applies.
Boesky points out that contracts are long because lawyers just copy each others work.
Anderman - All about rights to make sure that "you can use stuff down the road."
Kurtz points out that giving permission for something (say, to be in a game) does not grant permission to being on the box.
What about real-world attributes being brought into a game character? For example, a golfing character plays like Tiger Woods or John Daly. Boesky opines that "being like" is ok, but "being" isn't. Kurtz talks about replicating performance versus replicating likeness, where we wander rights of publicity -- references the Vanna White case where a robot Vanna White was used in a commercial.
Sports organizations, for example, owns the likeness of performances they host. Comment from audience that profit motive is pretty important in determining use of likenesses.
Anderman points out importance of getting releases up front. Issues of location releases even when duplicated in digital locations. Boesky asks what happens when know locations have changed advertising. Importance of product placement/licensing and the difference between movies and video games.
Kurtz points out the lack of legal basis for location releases. Why are location releases needed? Are they just a circular problem where insurance agencies won't cover without the releases..
Interesting how it devolved from digital character discussion into more typical licensing blah blah discussion. Limited discussion about actual digital implications.
Alas, I'll really only be able to blog the first two sessions, as I'm on the 3rd panel and have to leave before the final one of the day.
Posted by: Cory Ondrejka | Feb 11, 2005 at 13:52
2 beats 0! :-)
Posted by: greglas | Feb 11, 2005 at 14:18