Pittsburgh Arts, Regional Theatre, New Work, Producing, Copyright, Labor Unions,
New Products, Coping Skills, J-O-Bs...
Theatre industry news, University & School of Drama Announcements, plus occasional course support for
Carnegie Mellon School of Drama Faculty, Staff, Students, and Alumni.
CMU School of Drama
Monday, December 05, 2011
Andy Serkis Makes the Case for An Expanded Definition of Acting
ThinkProgress: We’ve talked about this a bit before, but Andy Serkis makes the case for why he should be eligible for acting awards — which I agree with, I just don’t know that we can nominate him alone
It hadn't occurred to me that visual effect artists are being under-credited, but thinking about it seems clear. I'm really shocked; I was under the impression that visual effect artists would get a lot of praise because of the innovative nature of their very line of work. Apparently this is not so. While they of course deserve recognition, I believe it should be it's own character. It is an entirely different process from what we know to be more traditional acting. While it is of the same nature, it is different enough to warrant a separate category. I hope this is realized soon.
I too had no idea that people like Serkis were not getting credited for their work. For me, it's a no brainer. This guy is doing work in a lot of mainstream films that is very complex. Surely it is a part of the creative process in a way that has not yet been recognized. The performance delivered, though technological, could not have happened in another way. Presumably as these technologies continue and grow, finding themselves used in more and more projects, then the proper recognition will be paid to their artists.
I believe that Mr. Serkis is correct in his assertion that what he is doing is, in fact, acting. It is simply in a different medium. It is exciting to watch the motion capture industry as it develops and becomes more mainstream. Whatever you may have thought about the cultural impact of Avatar, the movie definitely pushed motion capture and digital filmmaking to their limits. The fact that motion capture is being more fully integrated into the standard shooting process gives Mr. Serkis' argument even more ground to stand on. In Avatar, James Cameron was able to watch the scene being captured with the digital overlay superimposed with a "camera" being tracked by the motion capture system. I know that one of the issues that actors and motion capture is that the process is so difficult because they have to recreate a performance at a (sometimes much) later time.
Like the other commenters, before reading this I didn't think of how underrated visual effects artists are in the entertainment industry. Then again, I see no reason why Serkis would not be eligible for an award in recognition of his work on LOTR. Then again, voice over actors faced the same struggle when trying to gain recognition for the work they do on television programs. Maybe it's just a recurring theme...
I believ Andy serkis should get full recogntion for the work he does. he is putting on a hel of a performance and we are seeing it on the screen and like any performance in film or television, thier is an entire team making what you see happen and with serkis's ca,se it is more than most, but that shouldn't negate the fact that what he is putting out, the power behind what he is doing should be any less recognized than the work of the leading man. I really do hope that ths year he makes gets the nomination and respect he deserves.
I don't think it would even occur to me that what Andy Serkis does is not considered acting by many people. It seems that the disconnect is that when you're watching a character like Gollum on screen, you do not associate him with the actor portraying him the way you do when you're watching Orlando Bloom play Legolas. The reality is that Gollum behaves the way he does in the Lord of the Rings movies because of the way Andy Serkis crafted that character. The only difference is that Serkis isn't using his own body when he's acting.
This is a topic that gets brought up every year this time of year. It is interesting to think that Andy Serkis could get an award for his work. As technology changes, so to should the awards given to the artists. I feel as if this would open a whole flood gate of complaints. Would voiceovers then be nominated for awards? I know the award is important, so that makes this conversation very tricky. I have always felt that Andy Serkis deserves some kind of award
7 comments:
It hadn't occurred to me that visual effect artists are being under-credited, but thinking about it seems clear. I'm really shocked; I was under the impression that visual effect artists would get a lot of praise because of the innovative nature of their very line of work. Apparently this is not so. While they of course deserve recognition, I believe it should be it's own character. It is an entirely different process from what we know to be more traditional acting. While it is of the same nature, it is different enough to warrant a separate category. I hope this is realized soon.
I too had no idea that people like Serkis were not getting credited for their work. For me, it's a no brainer. This guy is doing work in a lot of mainstream films that is very complex. Surely it is a part of the creative process in a way that has not yet been recognized. The performance delivered, though technological, could not have happened in another way. Presumably as these technologies continue and grow, finding themselves used in more and more projects, then the proper recognition will be paid to their artists.
I believe that Mr. Serkis is correct in his assertion that what he is doing is, in fact, acting. It is simply in a different medium. It is exciting to watch the motion capture industry as it develops and becomes more mainstream. Whatever you may have thought about the cultural impact of Avatar, the movie definitely pushed motion capture and digital filmmaking to their limits. The fact that motion capture is being more fully integrated into the standard shooting process gives Mr. Serkis' argument even more ground to stand on. In Avatar, James Cameron was able to watch the scene being captured with the digital overlay superimposed with a "camera" being tracked by the motion capture system. I know that one of the issues that actors and motion capture is that the process is so difficult because they have to recreate a performance at a (sometimes much) later time.
Like the other commenters, before reading this I didn't think of how underrated visual effects artists are in the entertainment industry. Then again, I see no reason why Serkis would not be eligible for an award in recognition of his work on LOTR. Then again, voice over actors faced the same struggle when trying to gain recognition for the work they do on television programs. Maybe it's just a recurring theme...
I believ Andy serkis should get full recogntion for the work he does. he is putting on a hel of a performance and we are seeing it on the screen and like any performance in film or television, thier is an entire team making what you see happen and with serkis's ca,se it is more than most, but that shouldn't negate the fact that what he is putting out, the power behind what he is doing should be any less recognized than the work of the leading man. I really do hope that ths year he makes gets the nomination and respect he deserves.
I don't think it would even occur to me that what Andy Serkis does is not considered acting by many people. It seems that the disconnect is that when you're watching a character like Gollum on screen, you do not associate him with the actor portraying him the way you do when you're watching Orlando Bloom play Legolas. The reality is that Gollum behaves the way he does in the Lord of the Rings movies because of the way Andy Serkis crafted that character. The only difference is that Serkis isn't using his own body when he's acting.
This is a topic that gets brought up every year this time of year. It is interesting to think that Andy Serkis could get an award for his work. As technology changes, so to should the awards given to the artists. I feel as if this would open a whole flood gate of complaints. Would voiceovers then be nominated for awards? I know the award is important, so that makes this conversation very tricky. I have always felt that Andy Serkis deserves some kind of award
Post a Comment