There is a saying that technologies can sometimes be perceived to be so advanced that they are indistinguishable from magic, and visual effects studios have been developing “movie magic” for decades.

In many cases, this is the exact reaction that creatives want from special effects, particularly computer-generated imagery (CGI), which uses digitally created graphics to create objects, characters, creatures or entire worlds.

However, its wide-ranging uses and the criticism of less effective implementations of the post-production technology have created a lot of rumours, myths and sheer falsehoods that we are happy to correct here.

Is CGI A Recent Innovation?

Whilst the first feature film that exclusively used CGI was 1995’s Toy Story, CGI has potentially been used for nearly half a century beforehand.

Depending on your definition of “computer-generated”, the first film to use CGI was potentially 1958’s Vertigo by Alfred Hitchcock, whose introduction used adapted radar equipment to create the surreal spiral shapes.

Ignoring this, 1973’s Westworld had a pixelation effect that was made using CGI, and its less heralded sequel was the first feature film to integrate digital effects into physical footage.

Did Bruce Willis Really Fix His Hairline With CGI?

An exceptionally amusing story that has been spread since at least 1991, thanks to the LA Times, is the idea that CGI was used to painstakingly restore the receding hairline of Hollywood megastar Bruce Willis in the film Hudson Hawk.

This is typically used to explain the film’s seemingly impossibly large budget, but the reality is that the reason for the extremely large budget for Hudson Hawk was extensive script rewrites, which in turn required expensive reshoots.

Whilst 1991’s Terminator 2: Judgement Day showed how much potential CGI had at the time, there are limits to what it can accomplish.

Even in 2017, when reshoots to the film Justice League necessitated the removal of a moustache, the result was infamously conspicuous.

Is CGI Always Noticeable?

When people think of CGI visual effects, there is an implicit assumption that they are always as noticeable and conspicuous as Dwayne Johnson’s Scorpion King in The Mummy Returns, but in reality, most uses of CGI are remarkably subtle augmentations to practical effects and performances.

The best known example of this is 1994’s Jurassic Park, which famously used six minutes of CGI effects combined with extremely elaborate and high-quality animatronics, but CGI is often used in ways you might not expect.

The 2015 film Mad Max: Fury Road, often celebrated as a triumph of practical effects, extensively used CGI and green screens as shown in behind-the-scenes photography.

Conversely, films that are associated with CGI, such as 1982’s Tron and 1999’s The Matrix, combined deliberately conspicuous CGI with extensive wirework, practical effects, hand-painted frames and extensive post-production to create a completely unique effect. 

Is CGI Always Expensive?

Whilst most of the examples cited are extremely expensive feature films that rely on specialist computer equipment, CGI is not always that expensive to produce and is now widely accessible to even independent film projects and advertising.

The animated feature film Flow, winner of the Academy Award for Best Animated Film, was famously made using a laptop and an open source rendering software called Blender, for a stated budget of €3.5m.