Matte painting in the digital age
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the turn of the century, matte paintings have been a mainstay in the filmmaker's repertoire of visual effects. These intricate landscapes, rendered on glass by talented artists, have long been used by filmmakers to create realistic illusions without exceeding the limits of a reasonable budget. But today, many are beginning to question whether this technique is still a viable option in the digital age. Like many other filmmaking techniques, traditional matte painting is being completely redefined by computer-generated imagery. Traditional matte painting is quickly becoming a lost art, eclipsed by digital backlots and virtual sets. Today's new digital capabilities vastly expand the ability of filmmakers to create realistic landscapes that do not exist in the real world. They can now quickly and easily darken a sky, add or remove a mountain, or test multiple color combinations. Before the digital era, it took weeks to re-paint a scene for the same effect. Digital technologies can enhance locations and sets in ways that would be too costly to construct by conventional means. Digital techniques also free filmmakers from the two-dimensional limitations of traditional matte paintings. Now, for the first time, 3D rendering techniques allow the filmmaker complete freedom of camera movement through digitally generated environments. But while new digital capabilities offer many exciting possibilities , they can never replace the artist. The tools may have changed from paint brushes to graphics tablets, but the artist's ability to visualize and mimic reality is still in high demand as a way to offset the enormous costs required to produce films today. In fact, some traditional techniques often go unused even when the offer the possibility of superior results because the next generation of artists lacks the skills and training to use them. And the digital tools that artists need to paint on the computer today are still relatively crude when compared to traditional paints and brushes. While working on effects for "Titanic," our studio had less than two weeks to complete a shot of the rescue ship Carpathia. It would have taken too long to render a 3D model of the ship, but one of our artists was able to paint it in less than a week. That traditional matte painting was then com-posited digitally into the scene. Digital techniques also have the potential to save filmmakers time and money, but this is not always the case in practice. The time saved can easily …