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Uncanny Valley: When computer-animated grimaces haunt your nightmares
by Luca Fontana
Dead, but still alive: The return of James Dean thanks to CGI
7.11.2019
Translation: machine translated
Hollywood icon James Dean died in a car accident in 1955. Now he has been cast for the upcoming war drama "Finding Jack". The dead man is completely animated on the computer.
As The Hollywood Reporter reports,
dead actor James Dean will posthumously take on the role of Rogan, a platoon leader, in the upcoming Vietnam War drama "Finding Jack."
What is a leitmotif associated with the Greyjoys in HBO's "Game of Thrones" - "What Is Dead May Never Die" - couldn't be more true in the case of James Dean. The iconic actor, who achieved international fame during Hollywood's golden era in the 1950s with films such as "Rebel Without a Cause" and "East of Eden", died in a car accident on 30 September 1955. He was just 24 years old.
Renaissance thanks to CGI
The film is directed by Anton Ernst and Tati Golykh. It is being produced by the film studio Magic City Films, which has secured the rights to James Dean's image of his family. The Canadian special effects company Imagine Engine - known for their work on "Game of Thrones", "Deadpool" and Netflix's "Lost in Space" - and the African effects company MOI Worldwide, which is primarily active in advertising.
The dead actor is brought back to life thanks to computers, archive footage, photos, body doubles and replacement actors for the voice. Director Anton Ernst promises nothing less than "a realistic version of James Dean". Specifically:
We searched far and wide for the perfect actor. Rogan has a very complex character development. After months of research, we decided that James Dean was best suited for the role.
Responding to fears that CGI James Dean could be as alienating as CGI Peter Cushing as Grandmoff Tarkin in "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" a few years earlier, director Ernst said:
We are honoured that Dean's family is supportive and will make every provision to keep his legacy intact as one of the most iconic movie stars of all time. We have no intention of letting his fans down.
Is it really just artistic interests that are at the top of the list?
All just an expensive PR stunt?
In the aforementioned example of Grandmoff Tarkin, the late Peter Cushing was resurrected via CGI because he had already played the role in the original "Star Wars" in 1977. Although the end result is impressive, CGI Tarkin cannot hide the fact that it is not real: there is talk of the "Uncanny Valley". In other words, the oppressive feeling of looking at something that is only just not photorealistic.
In the case of James Dean, on the other hand, the actor was "committed" because there is said to be no one else on the entire planet who would be better suited and is still alive.
But it gets even crazier.
The filmmakers and CMG Worldwide - the agency that manages James Dean's image rights for his family - are now hoping that they will soon be allowed to use CGI technology on other well-known personalities.
Mark Roesler, CEO of CMG Worldwide:
The film opens up a whole new opportunity for many of our clients who are no longer with us!
CMG Worldwide's clients include more than 1700 celebrities from the entertainment, sports and music industries. These include Burt Reynolds, Christopher Reeve, Ingrid Bergman, Neil Armstrong and Jack Lemmon.
Director Anton Ernst adds:
Our partners in South Africa are very pleased. The technology could be used anywhere. For example, to recreate historical icons like Nelson Mandela. This would allow us to tell new stories of significance for South Africa's cultural heritage.
I guess I wasn't born with enough middle fingers to express how I feel about the whole thing. R.I.P. used to be. How do you see it? <p
Luca Fontana
Senior Editor
Luca.Fontana@digitecgalaxus.chI'm an outdoorsy guy and enjoy sports that push me to the limit – now that’s what I call comfort zone! But I'm also about curling up in an armchair with books about ugly intrigue and sinister kingkillers. Being an avid cinema-goer, I’ve been known to rave about film scores for hours on end. I’ve always wanted to say: «I am Groot.»
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