Digital technology has changed a lot about how the world works. In the Digital Age, physical borders and limitations mean very little. It truly is a wonderful time to be alive. Digital cameras are smaller, lighter, sharper, and more powerful. We walk around with awesome computing power in our pockets – our smartphones. We can work remotely using cloud-based services like TeamViewer. Digital market has infiltrated almost any type of industry you could name. That includes the film industry as well, even though that may surprise you.[box]
5 Digital Technologies Reshaping the Film Industry
Digital technology has progressed to a very advanced point. Compare the powerful digital cameras of today with the analog ones from the past. Even our smartphone cameras have evolved. Far from the point-and-shoot mechanics of cameras, phones can now record 360-degree views. 3D rendering allows films to insert individuals in a film that aren’t actually there. This particular technology got a lot of visibility in the Fast and Furious franchise. When Paul Walker tragically passed away in a car accident. The studio used Paul’s brothers Caleb and Cody to fill in. It did this by using digital technology to superimpose Paul’s image on their body.
It’s amazing how much digital technology has transformed the film industry in particular. Here are just 5 technologies that are at the forefront of this change:
- Autonomous Drone Cameras
- 3D Printing
- 4K 3D Cameras
- Algorithmic Video Editing
- Cloud-based Technologies
Without wasting any of your precious time, let’s take a running jump. Right into the midst of these exciting developments.
Autonomous Drone Cameras
Autonomous drones aren’t exactly new. Consumer versions of autonomous drone cameras do exist on the market. For a few hundred bucks, you easily can find one on Amazon. But these commercial drone cameras are only the infancy of truly autonomous drones. Thanks to advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning, things have changed. It is now possible to “teach” machines to operate independently. So when we say autonomous drones, we mean a drone that is almost sentient.
An autonomous drone designed for filmmaking is a different breed altogether. It has all the necessary knowledge of filmmaking, camera angles, and techniques. In short, everything you need to make a good film. It also has the ability to avoid obstacles in flight and capturing moving objects. Researchers at MIT already have fully autonomous drones in the works. We will be seeing a new form of cinematography in just a few months.
3D Printing
3D printers are one of the most important inventions of our time. The industrial applications are endless. From 3D printing houses to tools in outer space, 3D printers make for a very useful piece of technology. Filmmaking is actually very well-suited to adopting 3D printers to reduce costs.
For one thing, a 3D printer eliminates the need to transport equipment. So you don’t need to ship from location to location. You do not need to pay expensive shipping costs. Not when you can simply 3D print your props, costumes, and equipment. Of course, 3D printers can’t print a camera or lens, but it can print the parts you need. If nothing else, you can print clapboards. 3D printing isn’t advanced enough yet for it to be affordable and quick. But when that day comes, filming shipping costs will be a thing of the past.
4K 3D Cameras
Virtual reality is the name of the entertainment game of the future. So it may not come as a surprise that VR filming technology is actually very real. In fact, people are now looking at 4K 3D cameras to film movies for VR playing. Google and LucidCam have both come out with 4K 3D VR live production cameras. While VR is still not popular as a cinematic medium, it does have the potential to become so in the future. How soon can we watch movies in 4k 3D VR? Not too far in the future, considering the way things are progressing.
Algorithmic Video Editing
Algorithmic video editing is changing the entire film editing process. There are certainly many examples of algorithmic video editing in modern film making. There are some that will absolutely blow your mind. In We Own The Night, there is a thrilling high-speed car chase in the rain. It will blow your mind to know that all of the rain effects were added post-production. That’s not the only scary thing about algorithmic video editing. Many speculate that it may put the entire video editing team out of business.
Cloud-based Technologies
The film industry has been notoriously slow in adopting cloud-based technologies. However, the idea is slowly gaining traction. But in recent movies like The Walk, the epic scenes were the result of cloud technology. The thing about cloud platforms like TeamViewer Tensor is that they help businesses reduce in-house costs. They also tend to be scalable and involve the minimum of hardware to get going. In film production, large-scale data computing is a lot like the data needs of enterprises. This makes it imperative to use the cloud to reduce costs and create films with specific budgets.
Did You Know?
- Raindance Film Festival is considered one of the top fifteen film festivals in the world?
- Raindance Higher Education film training offers HND, BA and MA in Filmmaking and Screenwriting?
- Raindance members support indie film, and enjoy a range of benefits
- Let Raindance guide you on your filmmaking pathway. call +44 (0) 207 930 3412 or email filmschool@raindance.ac.uk
Very useful article with great content.
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