Sculpture in film
The use of digital tools raises the question of the role of traditional artists in the film industry. The idea of a modernity that occupies and devours everything suggests that the old traditions that found a path to development in cinema are disappearing and being replaced by new professions in which art becomes a simple problem of numerical and mathematical operations. Nothing could be further from the truth; computers without an artist or craftsperson to operate them are mere empty shells.

The role of the sculptor in the film industry is directly related to the construction of models of varying dimensions, which offer the possibility of recreating nonexistent or fantastical settings and characters. Although many consider building a film set to be the work of architects or art directors, its essence lies in creating volumes that interact with the characters throughout filming. Examples of this can be seen in the early films of the Star Wars saga: A new hope (1977) The Empire Strikes Back (1980) The Return of the Jedi (1983). In them, the sculptor's work is paramount because most of the scenery, creatures, and ships are handmade by artisans dedicated to giving imaginary worlds the appearance of reality.

Regarding character creation, as early as 1915 Willis O'Brien was merging sculpture with a new type of animation known as stop motion. For decades, Ray Harryhausen (1920) took this craft to levels of great refinement. Today, studios like Ardman keep the tradition alive and demonstrate that, far from disappearing, animated sculpture captivates audiences regardless of culture or age.

The role of the sculptor has changed as technology advances. The ability to create characters and entire worlds on a computer has given rise to a new type of artist: a digital sculptor who uses specialized software to generate 3D images. Meanwhile, in Star Wars, Often, the movement of the puppets or animatronics was generated by strings or by the creator's own hand. Avatar (James Cameron, 2009), the protagonists used motion capture suits, equipped with sensors to transfer the feeling of life to the three-dimensional, computer-generated characters.

Technological evolution has created new opportunities for sculpture. Consider, for instance, the rise of stereoscopic cinema, which has led both viewers and creators to perceive it as an art form of almost tangible, volumetric images. Rather than losing their place in the film industry, sculptors remain with their objects, characters, and settings, along with a new sculptural conception of cinematic perception that has become the cornerstone of cinema's future.