Communication media is an essential element of our civilization. From Photography to Television, from halftone printing to the Internet, humanity has relied on diverse media to record its history, communicate ideas and entertain. Today, at the down of the twenty first century, we are witnessing a dramatic transformation: with the advent of powerful personal computers and software tools, the way media are stored and processed has changed forever. Physical media are disappearing, and with it a set of practices will soon be history too.

This phenomenon is having a very important effect in the craft of film production. Today's most established filmmakers were formed completely under the analog school, and have witnessed the fast changes that have transformed many of the production processes. In order for them to adapt to this new way of working, a new hybrid craft is necessary, one that merges the essential elements of filmmaking with a newly acquired knowledge of digital media and software tools. Nevertheless, a few years from now the first generation of truly digital filmmakers will start taking over, bringing a whole new world of creative possibilities, points of view, and risking taking in the use of new techniques, breaking every possible old notion on how film should be made.

In order to understand the major trends that will influence the formation of these new digital filmmakers and the characteristics of their craft, I will present several driving forces that are shaping the future of film production.

Computer Interfaces

In 2003 we can identify two trends clearly established in the evolution of graphical user interfaces. One of them aims towards getting away from the mouse and keyboard in favor of 'ubiquitous computing'. Thanks to already available technology, at the experimental level we can find many examples of interfaces based on sensors and voice recognition.

The second trend is the creation of immersive environments. Personal computers available in the market right now provide the processing necessary to render 3-D environments in real time. Affordable software tools such as macromedia Director and Virtools allow the creation of interactive 3-D environments. We have evidence to suggest that virtual reality is finally reaching the consumer level, and we can expect an explosion in the use of 3-D based interfaces and working environments. This phenomena will have a very beneficial effect, as we can corroborate with Malcolm McCullough's words from his book Abstracting Craft: "There is good reason to expect that three-dimensional action and spatial thinking will expand the potential for digital craft."

On both cases mentioned above, the common trend in the evolution of graphic interfaces is to provide richer working environments that allow for a better continuity, fluidity and accuracy in the workflow. The digital craftsman from 2010 will have solid and highly sophisticated interfaces – the fruit of today's experimental work. Certainly, we can imagine that these new and sophisticated input and feedback devices, as well as immersive environments will greatly benefit the craft of filmmaking.

Visualization for film production

In February 2002, a breakthrough in film production made the headlines of diverse special effects and technical magazines: For the production of the feature film "Panic Room", director David Fincher had a digital studio build to order a visualization tool that allowed him and his crew to "pre-shoot" two thirds of the movie in advance. As a result, Fincher was able to carefully plan out many of the most complex scenes, by having the freedom of choosing any possible camera angle, and arranging the actors and set at his will. This is just the first glance of what could become an established practice by 2010. Furthermore, it is feasible to think that the processing power available in 2010 will allow the director to "step in" already shot scenes, and analyze them either trough the eyes of each character, or using any imaginable camera view. The possibility of closure in a real scene will be a reality, in other words, to digitally fill in the gaps to create new camera movements, once a scene has been shot in the real world. Having 3D models of the actors, plus an accurate reproduction of the set or real environment, would make this dream possible.

Restructuring of the production process

In 2003 we are witnessing the powerful impact that the transition from analog to digital media has had on the film production process. As a result, the boundaries between jobs descriptions are being blurred. One person with digital skills can easily perform more than one specific task. Some processes that before were clearly separated are being overlapped now. The nature of many jobs' skill sets is shifting: "The most valuable worker is the one who can combine previously separate skills creatively." We can anticipate that this trend will continue during the next seven years, resulting in a major restructuring of the film production process.

Influence from video games

Outside the film industry, the presence of software tools that provide all the necessary elements for creating alternative forms of motion pictures, such as Macromedia Flash and the use of game engines better known as machinimia, has already exerted some meaningful influence in the visual style of a number of feature films. We can anticipate that this influence will go beyond the aesthetics of the work and certainly the unique points of view as well as the skillfulness of these alternative-digital-filmmakers will push the transformation of diverse processes in the mainstream film industry.

Even though all of the trends presented will have an impact in shaping the new craft of film production, the traditional skills of storytelling and creating a visual language, will keep on being as important as ever. The challenge of the filmmaker of 2010 will reside in using the amazing technological resources available in a smart way, and to avoid becoming overwhelmed by the numerous choices offered for every step of the process. This will be achieved only by being highly literate in digital media, and it will a part of the filmmaker's craft to use these tools as a way to reach personal and artistic expression.

The 2010 digital filmmaker's background will be distinguished by a vast exposure to diverse forms of media, playing very different roles. Interactive television, the Internet, video games and digital media editing software will be among the pieces that will construct his or her previous experience. As a result, very tangible skills will work to his advantage when producing a film on a digital environment: wide attention span, hyper kinetic ability, the capacity to perceive many details, moving objects or notations on a screen and unique points of view, will be among the most noticeable ones. But most importantly, the ability to understand the possibilities and limits of digital media, and the creativity to establish solutions and finding shortcuts for every technical challenge will be the factors required to achieve mastery in his or her trade. In short, the new craft of filmmaking will be an hybrid craft that will inherit a tradition of more than 100 years of creating moving images to tell stories, and will possess a deep understanding and knowledge of the digital nature of the medium.



BIBLIOGRAPHY

Manovich, Lev, The Language of New Media, MIT Press, Boston, 2001.

Billups, Scott, Digital Moviemaking, Michael Wiese Productions, Los Angeles, 2000.

McCullough, Malcolm, Abstracting Craft, MIT Press, Boston, 1998.

Bass, Hirsch, Unkrich et al, Transitions – Voices on the Craft of Digital Editing, Friends of Ed, Birmingham, UK, 2002.

Goldman, Michael, Pre-Viz Panic, Millimeter Magazine, Apr 1, 2002. URL: http://millimeter.com/ar/video_previz_panic/

Lepage, Jean-Francois, PLF Pre visualizes Fincher’s Panic Room, CG Focus online magazine. February 14, 2002. URL: http://www.cgfocus.com/NewsDetails.cfm?NewsID=317


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