The first feature film to use CGI as well as the composition of live-action film with CGI was Vertigo,[1] which used abstract computer graphics by John Whitney in the opening credits of the film. The first feature film to make use of CGI with live action in the storyline of the film was the 1973 film Westworld.[2] The first feature film to present a fully CGI character was the 1985 film Young Sherlock Holmes, showcasing a fully animated stained glass knight character.[3] Other early films that incorporated CGI include Demon Seed (1977), Star Wars (1977),[2] Tron (1982), Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982),[2] Golgo 13: The Professional (1983),[4] The Last Starfighter (1984),[5] The Abyss (1989), Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991), and Jurassic Park (1993). The first music video to use CGI was Will Powers‘ “Adventures in Success” (1983).[6] In 1995, Pixar‘s Toy Story became the first fully CGI feature film, marking a historic milestone for both animation and film-making.[7] Prior to CGI being prevalent in film, virtual reality, personal computing and gaming, one of the early practical applications of CGI was for aviation and military training, namely the flight simulator. Visual systems developed in flight simulators were also an important precursor to three dimensional computer graphics and Computer Generated Imagery (CGI) systems today. Namely because the object of flight simulation was to reproduce on the ground the behavior of an aircraft in flight. Much of this reproduction had to do with believable visual synthesis that mimicked reality.[8] The Link Digital Image Generator (DIG) by the Singer Company (Singer-Link), was considered one of the world’s first generation CGI systems.[9] It was a real-time, 3D capable, day/dusk/night system that was used by NASA shuttles, for F-111s, Black Hawk and the B-52. Link’s Digital Image Generator had architecture to provide a visual system that realistically corresponded with the view of the pilot.[10] The basic architecture of the DIG and subsequent improvements contained a scene manager followed by geometric processor, video processor and into the display with the end goal of a visual system that processed realistic texture, shading, translucency capabilities, and free of aliasing.[11]
Combined with the need to pair virtual synthesis with military level training requirements, CGI technologies applied in flight simulation were often years ahead of what would have been available in commercial computing or even in high budget film. Early CGI systems could depict only objects consisting of planar polygons. Advances in algorithms and electronics in flight simulator visual systems and CGI in the 1970s and 1980s influenced many technologies still used in modern CGI adding the ability to superimpose texture over the surfaces as well as transition imagery from one level of detail to the next one in a smooth manner.[12]
The evolution of CGI led to the emergence of virtual cinematography in the 1990s, where the vision of the simulated camera is not constrained by the laws of physics. Availability of CGI software and increased computer speeds have allowed individual artists and small companies to produce professional-grade films, games, and fine art from their home computers.