Filmmakers have put monsters on screen for more than a century. In 2023, the real bogeyman looks just like us.
One issue is creating synthetic performers from an amalgamation of actors’ images. Studio sources said this has not happened yet, though they are aiming to reserve that right as part of the contract talks. The major film and television producers say they have addressed the union’s concerns on the issue in their latest proposal, according to sources familiar with the matter. The union, however, has not responded to their proposal, these studio sources say.
The producers said they would negotiate with actors on payment when the digital duplicate is used – and stipulated that the virtual version of the actor could not stand in for the minimum number of background actors required as part of the SAG agreement. The studios also are looking to continue the longstanding practice of 3D body scans to capture an actor’s likeness, in this case to create AI-generated digital replicas. Such images would be used in post production, to accurately replace an actor’s face or create an on-screen double, said a person familiar with the mechanics of film production.
Similarly, the studios want the right to digitally alter a performance post-production, in a way that is consistent with the character, the script and the director’s vision. This ability to substitute a word or two of dialogue, or make a quick digital wardrobe change, could save hundreds of thousands of dollars in costs to re-shoot a scene, said one of the studio sources.