Occasionally, it is the job of special effects artists in film and television to manipulate reality in order to present an image that audiences believe they would see, as opposed to what they would actually see in real life. This concept and practice incorporates not only the mathematics and engineering of special and visual effects, but the psychology of what people expect to be reality as well as the art of filmmaking. Together, these fields create images that make a story more believable, even though it is now actually further from reality than before. However, this procedure leads us to question whether it is right to continue to propagate incorrect expectations in audiences' minds, as opposed to the reality of what actually exists. Which is correct: the accurate presentation of reality, or what the human mind expects to be reality? In due course, the two may be resolved in a fashion appropriate to the nature of visual effects for entertainment.
Introduction
In the movie world, special effects artists are often given the same challenge over and over again--the re-creation of some aspect in the real world that, for reasons ranging from financial to safety concerns, cannot be filmed or recorded in a normal fashion. The artists must then incorporate their work seamlessly into the rest of the film so that no distinction can be made between the two pieces.
During the past few years, however, this has become increasingly difficult because many effects are now being done on a computer in 3D. Though this gives the effects team more control over the shot, it simultaneously introduces the problem of making the 3D elements appear real. For some objects appearing in the physical world, such as static, hard surfaces like brick or stone, this can be done easily--it is much more difficult to lend a photo-realistic look to something organic or dynamic, such as fur or water. That is where much of today's 3D graphics research lies: making an element like water appear to move, interact with other elements, and reflect and refract light like real water. It is a mix of science and engineering along with artistic creativity and vision. The ultimate goal is the creation of an on-screen product that is indistinguishable from the other elements of the movie.
