For almost two decades now, Robert Zemeckis has been one of the filmmakers at the forefront of using CGI technology in his films. I mean, this is the filmmaker who used motion-capture CGI back in 2004 for “The Polar Express,” which many would now look back and agree is far too soon. So, it makes sense that Zemeckis is attempting to be at the forefront of bleeding-edge technology for his next film, “Here,” as he aims to use deepfake VFX to de-age actors.
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According to a report from THR, Robert Zemeckis has hired the deepfake VFX studio, Metaphysic, to use the company’s Metaphysic Live tool to help de-age actors for his new film, “Here.” The guinea pigs, err, actors who will be deepfaked include folks such as Tom Hanks and Robin Wright. For those unaware, “Here” is based on Richard McGuire’s graphic novel, and tells the story of people in a single room over a long period of time. So yeah, they need some de-aging to help bring that story to life.
Apparently, Metaphysic Live is a tool that allows for that sort of VFX work to happen really quickly and in high quality, as it features “high-resolution photorealistic faceswaps and de-aging effects on top of actors’ performances live and in real-time without the need for further compositing or VFX work.”
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Basically, it’s a highly advanced deepfake tool, similar to the ones that you see on social media.
“I’ve always been attracted to technology that helps me to tell a story. With ‘Here,’ the film simply wouldn’t work without our actors seamlessly transforming into younger versions of themselves. Metaphysic’s AI tools do exactly that, in ways that were previously impossible,” Zemeckis said. “Having tested every flavor of face replacement and de-aging technology available today, Metaphysic are clearly the global leaders in feature-quality AI content and the perfect choice for this incredibly challenging, emotional film.”
Obviously, this is a new-ish technology that hasn’t really been used to its full extent in filmmaking. It’ll be interesting to see how it’s used in “Here.” Will it be another ‘Polar Express’ where maybe it’s a bit too soon, or perhaps we’re looking at the beginning of a whole new branch of VFX work that could shape how films are made moving forward? We’ll find out soon enough.
“Here” doesn’t yet have a release date.
