The Future of the Japan Animation

[Mike of the Desert] · Post by **[Mike of the Desert]** » Thu Sep 22, 2005 3:20 pm

Could be this a good argument of discussion? If thought well probably yes. In these days, to be precise the 14th of September, Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children came out, this new CG creation by Squaresoft probably schocked many of the FF serie Fans (I'm one of them, but I still didn't saw the movie.), instead of the "realistic" way that is been chosen for "The Spirits Within", this movie is, we can say, "Anime Style". I was thinking.. Is this the future of Anime? Personally.. I would answer both yes and not.

In twenty years we started from "Pong" (who don't know it?) and we reached this new level of art. Probably, in 50 years create movies like this will not be called a kolossal, and will be extremely easy, like a normal FMV. Will the animes of the future choose this way? Be CG? I thought about it, and I think that probably there will be both 2D and 3D creations, new advanced animation styles for some series, and CG for others. I'm not able to be really clear in this concept.. But I think that can really be an argument of discussion if we evade from fall in a flame war.

Org Profile · Post by **Otohiko** » Thu Sep 22, 2005 3:30 pm

Well I think this belongs in the General Anime section for one.

What do I think? I think all types of animation have their place. For one though, I doubt that 2D animation will ever completely lose its' appeal, but the gradual computerization and mixing of 3D and 2D are quickly gaining ground.

In 50 years, we may indeed see something very different. But in the next number of years at least, I can see the primary market still owing a lot of loyalty to their beloved 'flat' characters. And when there's money to be made, it gets made

Sephiroth · Post by **Sephiroth** » Thu Sep 22, 2005 5:34 pm

Wether 3d is good or not is irrelivant, what matters is that the overal animation industry see's that finding nemo is the highest grossing animated film and that it's in 3d. I go to the art institute and want to make a 2d demo reel and almost every teacher telld me 'don't'. The number of jobs in 2d is getting smaller and smaller now.

There will eventually be a even footing of both but for right now 3d is the it thing and it'll take over even more then it has before.

Remember that it's not usually artists that decide on what gets made it's producers who get idea's pitched to them that decide. Since advent children is the case for this topic. Think about advent children from a marketable point of view. Why was this chosen to make into a movie, because it so far has been squares most populare FF. Androginies really popular right now so low and behold all the males that are popular look way more efemine then they did in FF7. thye also create even more feminized men to attract the female demographic, since the 60 minutes of non stop figts will hit the lower end male market. Low and behold you have a hit almost garenteed.

As for it being anime style, no anime style is suppose to involve some sort of physics. It felt more like a crappy japanese action flick (oh why can't they learn from the chinese).

So is this the future, i suggest you take a look around. It's allready our present.

Everything is CG because everything is now computer generated. From holding lines, to coloring, to obviously 3d.

R-A-N-M-A · Post by **R-A-N-M-A** » Fri Sep 23, 2005 1:03 am

I don't think it could really be concidered anime at all, At least I don't classify Advent CHildren and Spirit's within as anime. I think the best example of snime in 3D is Appleseed. If anime is ging to change drastically in any way asided from the 3D landscapes and pans already used it will be through cell shading. It keeps much more of the animated feel while still adding worlds of possibility.

kthulhu · Post by **kthulhu** » Fri Sep 23, 2005 3:23 am

THE FUTURE? STAGNATION.

bum · Post by **bum** » Fri Sep 23, 2005 10:43 am

Honestly we're so far from true photorealism that I'l probably have two video cards running in sli with 4 2048bit quantum gpu's each by the time we'l see true photorealism. Iether way, a good looking anime (or game, movie, etc) is about the art and the specific style, not how much the developers try to push technology in order to get things as realistic as they possibly can. CG art is also generaly harder to truely appreciate than 2d art. It's just too often too flashy to realy draw you in. Instead the eye candy is their to make up for whats generaly a lackluster story and bland characters (hello spirits within). It also takes way too much time and effort to produce the cuting edge CGI we see today for most production studioes to consider using it as a standard over 2d animation. Models can take weeks to make and perfect. 3D worlds are a pain in the ass to create and dietail, then you've got shadows, lighting, complex effects parogramed with pixel and vertex shaders. Stuff that would probably take an average pc months to render a single frame off. Untill someone does something wierd and post-modern with CGI, it'l be little more than eye candy and kids movies.

Banana_Boat · Post by **Banana_Boat** » Fri Sep 23, 2005 2:16 pm

I think that CG animation has no place in anime, at all whatsoever, period.
For one, IT WOULD NOT BE ANIME ANY LONGER
The moment that happens, anime will be nothing but a blurry memory and history for me

azulmagia · Post by **azulmagia** » Fri Sep 23, 2005 6:52 pm

If CG completely takes over, it would be a tragedy. In fact, I'm not entirely sure computer animation in the cel-less sense is all that good of an idea either. In the chapter "Images of Immortality" in his book Voltaire's Bastards John Ralston Saul discusses and debunks the notion that greater technical realism constitutes progress in art. While he doesn't mention anime specifically, he does mention people like Art Spiegelman, Disney and the European BD creators.

John Ralston Saul wrote:As the electronic images of real people improved to the point of perfection, so the cartoon increasingly became a release mechanism for the visual imagination or, rather, the human need to exaggerate. That Mickey Mouse is still the most famous man in the world merely confirms that Disney was more important for the image than Picasso or any other modern painter. They all had to struggle against the prison of the perfect image. Disney actually released the image from prison.

....

In Le Proces-verbal, a novel by the French writer Le Clézio, the hero says: "I am in the cartoon of my choice." A short time later, rational society locks him up and tells him that he is insane. To a remarkable degree, the visual side of the humanist tradition is now in the hands of the cartoonist, as is the quest for the immortal image. The art experts with their client artists are increasingly the allies of the television sitcom and of imprisoned reality. It is hardly surprising in a society which seems to be in decline, but worships structure too much to do anything about it, that imagination should be treated as an enemy and not as a friend of the people.

In other words, if he is right, CG has a great alienating potential, and what attracted people to anime in the first place would probably evapourate if CG completely took over.