Unintended Consequences: Digital Filming Changes Acting
from the can't-predict-this-stuff dept
While it's well known that new digital technologies have allowed moviemakers to change the economics of movie making in a way that could seriously shake up the industry, what hasn't received as much discussion is the fact that digital technologies are changing how actors act in films as well -- and we're not just talking about the use of virtual actors and characters. Chris Anderson has written up an interesting post about a group of moviemakers describing some of the unintended benefits of going digital. Since film costs were always a big issue in the production of a film, directors would be careful to conserve the use of actual film. That meant a few rehearsals before real film was used -- and when the film was rolling the pressure was even higher on actors, sometimes making them act less naturally. However, with digital being virtually costless, directors can just keep filming. A "rehearsal" no longer needs to be a "rehearsal" if it captures the scene perfectly. In fact, the continuous filming allows actors to be a lot more natural and spontaneous, often making the acting better. Everyone always figured that digital editing and changing things within the video would be benefits of going digital -- but the impact on actual acting is a totally unexpected consequence that can have a huge impact on the quality of films.Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
Reader Comments
Subscribe: RSS
View by: Time | Thread
Also HD
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Also HD
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
movies suck, actors suck, techdirt sucks, this pos
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
RE: movies suck, actors suck, techdirt sucks, this
im not sure, but, yeah, maybe, is that Irony?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
So...
Hah, most likely the opposite I reckon.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
HD
Also, most Hollywood directors do not have the patience for this...
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Continuous filming
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
and who knew...
And re-release old movies with all the guns changed into walkie-talkies, because kids should only see violence on the news. Or video games. Or when dad comes home drunk and catches mom on the couch with the mailman.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
More Takes... More Money
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: More Takes... More Money
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: More Takes... More Money
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: More Takes... More Money
so they won't have to search through all the 'no's and just stick to the 'maybe's.
and they could edit the movie in iMovie which splits the film into scenes based on the camera turning off. continous filming doesn't have to mean the camera never turns off.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: More Takes... More Money
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
HA they got the job by having the biggest b**bs and most marketable appearance nothing to do with talent.
This article is interesting but doesnt explain why the films are still so sh*t!
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Gee
It still doesn't explain why the movies suck real bad!
Perhaps they don't need scripts anymore either!
Better yet, they should create software that can write decent scripts.
Shoot, just have the software do the whole movie, it'll cost nothing to make and can't be worse than what their charging for it now.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
It doesn't really work that way
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: It doesn't really work that way
How much more pressure could a seasoned actor have than to be on a stage acting their heart out. That sounds liek high pressure.
I would imagine that being in front of a camera gives them far more control and less pressure regardless of how you capture the art.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Digital filiming can change the dynamics though. I expect that some day you will go to the same movie three times and see three different endings just because the studio uploads a new ending every month. Why not (oh, $8.50 each time... that's a problem).
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Big deal...
[ link to this | view in chronology ]