Cyberspace cinema
Cyberspace technology has hit Hollywood. While actors are shooting at sites in Hollywood, the back- drop is being built inside the memories of computers in London.
Lawntnower Man 2: lobe's War, which is to be released by the end of the year, involves scenery being sent down each night via high-capacity phone lines to Hollywood, where it is locked in with the day's filming (New Scientist, Vol 146, No 1978).
The actors perform in front of a blue background, and the recording takes place on a conventional 35min film. The images are converted into digital code and stored on disc and tape. Meanwhile, the computer artists draw 3-D images of the model where the action is taking place. Then, the actors' images are superimposed on the computer sequences and the blue background removed electronically.