“… computers are now doing many things that used to be the domain of people only. The pace and scale of this encroachment into human skills is relatively recent and has profound economic implications. Perhaps the most important of these is that while digital progress grows the overall economic pie, it can do so while leaving some people, or even a lot of them, worse off.”[i]
Erik Brynjolfsson and Andy McAfee – Authors of Race Against the Machine
Would you like to see your favorite actor in a movie, TV program, or Netflix? Or, would a computer generated facsimile of a similar actor work just as well for you? Or, at what point is the quality and illusion of reality good enough?
Acting and modeling jobs will be impacted by computer generated imagery and robotics. Hollywood production companies consider the cost of ‘world class’ actors to be prohibitively expensive not to mention dealing with prima donna behaviors. As well, world renown models are no longer mannequins simply walking down the fashion runway. Models are global personalities and influencers. And, they’re expensive. So, what to do?
So, a COVID solution is: why not replace actors entirely with computer generated facsimiles? Just think about it? Producers and directors already are using computer generated imagery and avatars in place of actors. In a few years, advanced avatars will replace actors and models as holograms look human and their voices have emotional resonance.
At the same time, avatar models will walk down fashion runways. The observers on the side of the runway will be virtual participants viewing the show through virtual and augmented reality headsets. No, social distancing and infection concerns.
Work Lesson Earned: Movies and TV are harbingers of things about to happen at work. Some believe the future of robotics may be humanoid assemblies of us or even of pets. The future is not that far away as automation and robotics point to coming paradigm shifts.
[i] Race Against The Machine, Erik Brynjolfsson and Andy McAfee, 2011.