broken lute

It’s not some gimmick that we are doing, it is a legitimate aesthetic that we are trying to reach with its own upsides compared to modern high resolution display! Not that there shouldn’t be an option to turn it off for accessibility reasons, there should. But its existence, and the pursuit of it, isn’t a gimmick to many of us and it won’t be going away just because you perceive it so.

A while ago I thought, after having watched the special editions of the Star Wars Original trilogy in all its HD glory, and specifically thinking of this scene:

I thought: “how could movie studios get away with graphics like these at the time? If these graphics were used today, would people even watch these films?” Like, look at Vader’s head, it’s just outright clipped! His helmet shaped like a thumb because of the heinous blue screen job!

Thinking also of behind the scenes stuff where they explain how Matte Lines were such an issue for the special effects crew when making The Battle of Hoth scene, because all of the ship composite effects would leave an obvious as hell black outline on the white snow planet. Making an obvious unwanted film artifact visible. And their solution was “oh just lower the opacity!”:

I mean could you imagine that today!?!?? Imagine watching some modern blockbuster movie, and for one of the special effects they couldn’t quite get it to look right, so they just lowered the opacity to make it look less objectionable. Or if they didn’t and just left that “ugly” low fidelity black outline. Today? On these modern HD displays? CONSUMERS WOULD THROW A FIT! They threw a fit over “hover head” when actors weren’t filmed with their CGI suits and instead just green screened their heads onto a separate CGI suit (although legitimate criticisms of this were moreso that this lack of care in the visual fidelity was a capitalist cost cutting measure rather than a necessity, and also that this lack of care showed in other areas such as the story).

And that was just the thing! They could get away with cutting out parts of Vaders head and lowering the opacity of ships because the options for displays back then weren’t as good as they are now. Now of course, the ability to make good clean special effects is also much better and easier now,,, for large corporations. But my indie ass? Yes filmmaking has become more available to me than it would be if I was in the 80’s or 90’s, but I don’t have a studio or a crew or tons of money to dump into such crisp and clean effects!

And so low resolution effects/techniques, what I call things like CRT effects being used today (though it can extend to other effects that have the result of lowering fidelity), to garner that same ability they had in the past; that ability to not have to make something absolutely perfect, to be able to work with imperfections and be able to say “it looks good enough,” is legitimately special, and goes unappreciated by modern consumers used to modern HD graphics, special effects, and displays.

Compare the Vader hologram effect to the later made prequels and their holograms:

I could only DREAM of making a movie with HALF as much fidelity across my entire creation as the Prequels do across there’s. Although I would not want the capital inherent to be able to make such a creation. I love Star Wars, but it was made in the context of a billionaire institution, made George Lucas a billionaire, and it was funded by his billionaire ass, and is continually funded by billionaires. Fuck billionaires. We don’t need billionaires in society. No one should be able to have that much money. Fuck George Lucas.

Now I am a big proponent that these low resolution effects don’t have to just mean emulating the low resolution effects of the past. We can create new low resolution effects. Hell pixel art is itself one of these low resolution effects that makes it easier for indie game developers to make more with less. But CRT effects can add to that. I practiced this low resolution philosophy I had thought up with an experimental short film of mine:

(Possible seizure warning)

In this, I was very *literal* about the meaning of “low resolution effects” and literally just made it, well, low resolution. As a way of trying to find low resolution effects without relying on the emulation of low resolution effects of the past, partly because I didn’t have the skill to make such an effect, whilst also catering to my history as a pixel artist.

However, it cannot be understated that emulation of past low resolution effects, like CRT effects, do look nice even with modern media made for HD:

Let’s not turn our nose up at a style with legitimate purpose and reason for existing. Even if attempts at emulating past low fidelity effects aren’t as accurate as they are on those actual old devices. Even if it is made by people who haven’t had first hand experience with those original low fidelity devices. Even if it’s in something you didn’t think it was necessary to be in. Low resolution effects are a style similar to exaggerated color grating to garner a specific outcome. It is as necessary as the artist makes it.

You want to study abroad? Show us proof that there is a quadrillion dollars in your bank account. Oh, an average monthly salary in your country is $400 and you plan to work when you arrive? You can't do that, silly, a student visa only allows you to work 2 hours every third Wednesday, and if we find out that you're working a second more we will deport you.

You want to work abroad? Better be a programmer, then of course you are welcome. Doctor, scientist, white-collar or, god forbid, blue-collar worker? You can fuck right off, your visa application goes straght into trash.

You will have to prove that you can afford a guest, have some income and also usually take responsibility for possible deportation cost.

But if you really are inviting a friend over, they will give you a formal document you can send to your friend. Then the friend applies for a visa while attaching the Very Official document with it. They will get the Schengen visa and most probably will get it expedited too.