Digital character

A digital character is a character usually seen in a film or computer game that has been made using Computer-generated imagery (CGI). The earliest digital characters can be traced back to computer games, but in the early 21st century they began to appear in films. Various software has been developed to generate digital characters.

In some implementations, the character is created by first making a model out of clay (called a maquette). Others rely entirely on computer animation.

Clay model chavetta

After completing a clay model, it is scanned by a laser scanner and the resulting data is transferred to a computer. Using a 3D program a mesh is created which can then be manipulated by the artist. This mesh can be made manually using the 3D program, but it is more time consuming and therefore more expensive. However the results achieved using the manual method are often superior and is becoming easier with the advent of new technology.

Once a mesh of a chavetta has been created it is attached to a rig, which is a system of bones which fit inside the chav. The rig has controls that are used to animate the chav.