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biohazard DEGENERATION

October 2008 [CG]

Evaluating realistic CG animation

Vision of Digital Frontier

Q.

Since the release of Final Fantasy in the year 2000, 10 years have passed and technology allowed us to create more realistic CG animation. Movies created from games had been very successful. As the top CG production company in Japan, what do you think of the realistic CG animation movies in recent years?

A.

Digital Frontier is ready to face all sorts of changes in CG and visual effects. In fact, we have filmed non-full CG movies in the past including “Hebi no Piyasu” (2008). Like the split tongue (VFX tongue) in the movie, we applied CG on part of the character’s body. Similarly, in “Death Note” we created a CG character that interacts with real actors.

These type of CG help expand the story and ways of expression that would not been possible without CG. Up until now, we have created 5 full CG movies: “BonoBono Kumomo no Ki no Koto”(02), “Appleseed”(04), “Forest of Cats- Atagoal” ” (06), “EX Machina” (07), and “Biohazard Degeneration” (08). Previous works were created to imitate traditional celluloid animation but Biohazard aimed for reality.

New Phase in Realistic CG Films

When it comes to realistic CG, there is Final Fantasy created in the year 2000. Back then, there were two arguments: that it marked the challenge toward “reality” and that it is a CG moving toward reality. “Appleseed” went against both of these arguments and it was created like celluloid animation.

“Biohazard Degeneration” could be thought as a film between CG close to reality and animation that is close to CG. We were certain that it would be accepted by the mass if we could bring the world created in the game into the movie. With limited time and budget it was a difficult project to work on. However, we believe that these types of animations would increase in the near future.

Q.

Do you think that remake version of the game that asks for both similarities with the game and realistic features would increase in the near future?

A.

Unlike CG production companies in the States, Japanese grew up with anime and game. So I believe that CG creators would continue to work closely with anime and game artists and establish a path different from Pixar or Hollywood.

At Digital Frontier we would like to continue to expand our work in the field of film, animation, and visual effects.