Today, we stand at an inflection point for cinema and gaming, both in Bollywood and Hollywood. Technology advancem-ents have been changing the way entertainment is consumed with the advent of media centres, personal video recorders and especially Blu-ray players & HDTVs.
However, it does not stop there. Latest technology innovations have completely changed the way movies and games could be created and even ideated. We have reached a key milestone where it is not difficult to imagine that viewers could interact in a movie, for example switch between the characters, put themselves in the driver?s seat in a race scene, duck behind buildings and pop up to see what?s going on in an intense fight scene or even give it the ending that they desire.
On the gaming front, compelling plots and creepy yet exciting environments have necessitated photo realistic experience in the latest games. All of this may sound futuristic and may seem decades away. Fortunately, the technology is here sooner than we expected.
Since 1896, when cinema first entered India, the industry has gone through several transformations to evolve into one of the largest film industries in the world. As story-tellers and directors struggle to find elements that will make their venture stand out from the rest, special effects and animation have emerged as the biggest rescue elements for them. Until a few years ago, technology driving Bollywood had numerous limitations. Directors were limited to camera tricks and physical models to show a supernatural phenomenon.
With technology not matching the pace of movie making, it had always been a challenge for any director to translate his vision in to a film. On the other hand, their counterparts in Hollywood had access to the best of technologies, making it easier for them to transform their ideas in to reality. As a result, Hollywood moved almost a whole generation ahead of Bollywood in terms of special effects and the use of technology in movie making. Remember Steven Spielberg?s Jurassic Park, which was regarded as a landmark in the use of computer generated imagery. During its release, the film grossed more than $914 million, becoming the most commercially successful film released up until that time.
Like cinema, games too have come a long way. This is a platform that offers the audience an opportunity to not just be an integral part of the story, but also to interact with the story, its characters and environment. Interactivity has been the unique feature that has made the popularity of games grow exponentially. India is fast emerging as a key one-stop destination for game development. According to the Nasscom study on animation and gaming industry in India, Indian gaming industry is expected to reach $300 million by 2009. The global gaming market is expected to increase to $36 billion by 2009, representing a CAGR of 17% for the period 2005-2009.
From the developers? perspective, worldwide gaming market is expected to increase to $11 billion by 2009. In fact, gaming has been termed as one of the fastest growing industries globally. In spite of such widespread popularity of gaming, regardless of how immersive the story and interactivity may seem, the visuals in these games have always been a step back from reality. Low frame rates and rough object edges have always succeeded to pull any die-hard gamer out of illusion back to reality.
On one hand we have cinema, a medium where we?ve achieved visual quality that rivals reality, but lacks the interactive elements to really pull people into the story. On the other hand, we have games, a medium where we?ve achieved fantastic interactivity and involvement, but traditionally have lacked the visual fidelity needed to really represent reality. For both mediums, the content creators?directors on one hand and game developers on the other?have the desire to take entertainment to the next level.
With time and more importantly demand, things have changed in both these entertainment sectors. Lately, we have witnessed a new trend of sci-fi and superhero movies such as Koi Mil Gaya, Kkrish and Love Story 2050, each being termed as a significant milestone in the history of Indian cinema. This trend has been taken forward by game developers such as FXLabs Studios who have signed up an exclusive deal with Yashraj Film Studios to develop an ?AAA? production quality PC game based on the action thriller Dhoom 2.
Now let?s understand what Bollywood 2.0 could do for film directors, game developers and the end consumer. With Bollywood 2.0, it?s easy to imagine the possibilities for interactive movies. Viewers will be able to change the weather or time of day, change viewing angles and even influence the course of a movie?s plot. For gamers, Bollywood 2.0 represents a quantum leap in graphics quality.
On the content development end, with Bollywood 2.0, game developers have the ability to create environments that look every bit as real as the world we live in, giving way to creativity that has never been seen till now.
The computer generated characters, the environments, all of it can be rolled into the game making process saving significant time and money, and more importantly, not sacrificing the vision of the director. This means movies and high end games based on them can be released in the market at the same time.
While all of this sounds exciting, it is also important to consider what it will take for Bollywood 2.0 vision to turn into a reality… At the international level, Hollywood directors like David Fincher have already started using this technology in their current film projects.
These advancements in processing technology can now begin combining with the artistic passion of top ?Bollywood? movie directors, visual effects companies and game developers across India. This technology is available in India as well and accessible to film makers to extend their imagination and foray into newer areas. The faster we will see top movie directors and game developers embrace this concept, the sooner will Cinema 2.0 come to life as a mainstream phenomenon. For the first time in history, the technology is here before the content creators could have asked for it. It is now up to them to bring concepts and ideas which are truly futuristic, things that one could only imagine and things that were impossible in reality.
Don?t be surprised if you see people not just playing movies but playing in them. I guess 2050 is already here.
?The writer is general manager (marketing, strategy & ISV alliances), AMD India