Why have cotton when you can have silk?

A CGI miracle or how an icon was resurrected

As an Audrey Hepburn fan, I was excited to see her in a new material. No, I was more than that. I was thrilled. Set in the Amalfi coast, Italy we are transferred in the idyllic atmosphere of the glamorous and sparkling movies of the 50s. Audrey is on a bus blocked by a pedestrian. From the moment she lays her eyes on a handsome stranger she ditches the bus and takes a free ride. At a close up, we witness her eating a piece of chocolate as a reward. The footage was from the Roman Holiday and the song was Hepburn’s version of “Moonriver” as sung on Breakfast at Tiffany’s.

She breathes, she walks and she shines even though she has died twenty years ago. Audrey Hepburn is the new face of Galaxy, a brand of chocolate in the United Kingdom. This was achieved by the notorious CGI technology. What is that? Well, computer-generated imagery is a computer application that allows the user to create images and simulate reality.

So, why use today’s celebrities when you can have glorious iconic stars? It has happened before. Back in 2006, Gap used a scene of her dancing from the movie Funny Face featuring the song “Back In Black” by AC/DC. A more recent CGI miracle happened on September 2011 when Dior launched an ad for its perfume called J’Adore starring the actress Charlize Theron. The storyline was simple. Ms Theron is supposed to hit the catwalk althought being late. She heads backstage to get ready. There we catch a glimpse of her fellow “models” which are Grace Kelly, Marlene Dietrich and Marilyn Monroe.

Even before, in 1995 Fred Astaire was used in an ad about brooms named Dirt Devil. This ad shows the great development of technology; instead of adding the item that is advertised in a film extract, the film extract is adjust to the concept of the ad. Dirt Devil sparked controversy. So a new legislation was oficiated in order to protect the image of dead celebrities. The period of protection is between 50-70 years. Incedentaly, this limits heir’s ability to use the image of posthumous celebrities.

This experience can be described as scary, intresting or awesome. The question that rises is if this technic is morally acceptable. In the Hepburn-Galaxy case, Hepburn’s sons gave permission to use her image. Is this something that she would have accepted? Does advertising a chocolate will ruin a part of her reputation? On the contrary, people who don’t know her may discover her and the old cinema. People who have forgotten her, will remember her. Lastly, the most terrifying thing is where this technology will lead to. In a few years, we may be talking about digital manipulation of the images of both living and deceased performers and even everyday people.

by Evangelia Patmali