“I, Robot” tackles the “Three Principles of Robotics” head-on *Note! Contains spoilers.

*This article touches on the ending of the story, so we recommend watching the movie before reading it.

“I, Robot” synopsis

Chicago in 2035. Robots have become an indispensable part of people's daily lives, and the coexistence of humans and robots was protected by three principles.

1. Robots must not harm humans.

1. Robots must obey orders given by humans.

1. Robots must protect themselves unless there is a risk of violating Articles 1 and 2 above.

One day, a scientist who is an authority on robot development dies under mysterious circumstances. Detective Spooner suspects that a robot was involved in the death, and with the help of robot psychologist Dr. Calvin, investigates the mystery. Then, he becomes involved in a huge conspiracy that is unimaginably terrifying...

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• A movie with the theme of "Three Laws of Robotics"
• robot synthesis
• AI Viki
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A movie with the theme of "Three Laws of Robotics"

The sci-fi film ``I, Robot'' (2004) directed by Alex Proyas blends the original screenplay ``Hardwired'' by screenwriter Jeff Winter with elements from Isaac Asimov's short story collection `` I, Robot '' (50). It is based on a story created by

Set in Chicago in 2035, where robots have become part of everyday life, the story begins when Dr. Lanning (James Cromwell) of US Robotics dies under mysterious circumstances. Detective Spooner (Will Smith), who is in charge of investigating the case, discovers that this is not a suicide, but a murder, and that the suspect is Sunny, an NS-5 robot.

However, Dr. Calvin (Bridget Moynahan), who is also Dr. Lanning's favorite student, objects to the fact that such a thing cannot happen due to the "Three Laws of Robotics" (*1) programmed into the robot's positronic brain. Detective Spooner becomes isolated even within the police organization.

*1 Article 1: Robots must not harm humans. Furthermore, we must not cause harm to humans by overlooking such risks. Article 2: Robots must obey orders given to humans. However, this shall not apply if the order given violates Article 1. Article 3: Robots must protect themselves unless there is a risk of violating Articles 1 and 2 above.

robot performance

Robot Sunny's movements in this work are based on the acting of Alan Tudyk (*2), who is active as a stage actor and voice actor in animation. The person in charge was Andy Jones, an animation supervisor at Digital Domain , who was responsible for 535 shots featuring robots. He was chosen for this job because of his experience as the animation director for `` Final Fantasy '' (2001) and ``Final Flight of the Osiris'' in the short story collection ` ` Animatrix '' (2003). was appointed.

“I, Robot” (C)2017 Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment LLC. All Rights Reserved.

If you think about it normally, you would think that motion capture (*3) was used to express these CG characters. Currently, facial expressions can be read using a head-mounted camera called a helmet cam, and even the minute movements of fingertips can be detected using a glove-shaped device. However, at this time, capture technology was still in its infancy, and only the general movements of the actors could be captured.

Capture work also requires a dedicated studio (*4) called a volume. As a result, it was not possible to simultaneously capture the actors' performances in a normal studio or on location.

Jones referred to the method WETA Digital , which is in charge of the 315 cut, used for Gollum in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002). This is a technique called 3D rotoscoping, in which Tudyk and other robot characters are filmed at the same time as the actors are performing on a regular set or location. Animators then read the facial expressions from the footage and applied them to the CG model.

*2 Tudyk said,Rogue One: A Star Wars StoryHe also played ``K-2SO'' in ``K-2SO'' (16).

*3 In action scenes, etc.motion analysis companyOptical motion capture is also being performed using an infrared camera. In addition, the long shot scene where the NS-5s swarm like ants was created by WETA Digital.Lord of the Ring” (01), the AI ​​crowd simulation software developed forMassiveis also used.

*4 Currently, motion capture can be used outdoors using methods such as ``using LED markers,'' ``using inertial sensors and GPS,'' and ``image-based capture from graphic patterns drawn on the suit.'' Ta.

robot synthesis