Martinez Alexandra, Campera Marco, Nekaris K A I
Nocturnal Primate Research Group, School of Social Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford OX3 0BP, UK.
Department of Biological and Medical Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford OX3 0BP, UK.
Animals (Basel). 2022 Jun 18;12(12):1576. doi: 10.3390/ani12121576.
For over 100 years, non-human primates (primates) have been a part of the now hundred-billion-dollar global film industry in a variety of capacities. Their use in the film industry is of concern due to the negative welfare effects on individuals, the potential for increased pet trade, and the conservation impacts of public perception. While the effects on human perception of using live primates in film have been studied, little research has been performed on their appearance in animation and none in computer-generated imagery (CGI). We aimed to investigate how the portrayal of primates varied between depiction medium types and how this related to the films' performance with critics and in the box office. We observed 151 primates in 101 different English-speaking films that debuted between 2000 and 2019. For each appearance we recorded aspects of primate portrayals based on accuracy, anthropomorphism, environment, and agency displayed, along with the depiction medium. We used structural equation models to depict the highest likelihood of the portrayal aspects on the medium's relationship to the films gross profit worldwide and film critic consensus scores. We found that over the 20-year time frame, use of live primates has decreased, CGI has increased, and animations have remained relatively steady. While animation had no significant relationship to gross profit or critic consensus, both were significantly lower for films that used live primates and were significantly higher for films that used CGI primates. Due to the steady increase in the use of the CGI medium and its positive relationship with gross profit and critic consensus, it could have great effects on people's perceptions of primates and implications for conservation efforts.
一百多年来，非人类灵长类动物一直以各种身份参与到如今价值千亿美元的全球电影产业中。由于其对个体的负面福利影响、宠物贸易增加的可能性以及公众认知对保护的影响，它们在电影产业中的使用备受关注。虽然已经研究了在电影中使用活体灵长类动物对人类认知的影响，但对于它们在动画中的形象研究甚少，而在计算机生成图像（CGI）方面则尚无研究。我们旨在调查灵长类动物在不同描绘媒介类型中的形象呈现如何变化，以及这与电影在评论界和票房方面的表现有何关联。我们观察了2000年至2019年间首映的101部不同英语电影中的151只灵长类动物。对于每一次出现，我们根据准确性、拟人化、环境以及所展示的能动性，连同描绘媒介，记录灵长类动物形象呈现的各个方面。我们使用结构方程模型来描述形象呈现方面与媒介对全球电影总利润和影评人共识评分的关系的最高可能性。我们发现，在这20年的时间框架内，活体灵长类动物的使用有所减少，CGI的使用有所增加，而动画的使用则相对稳定。虽然动画与总利润或影评人共识没有显著关系，但使用活体灵长类动物的电影在这两方面都显著较低，而使用CGI灵长类动物的电影则显著较高。由于CGI媒介的使用稳步增加及其与总利润和影评人共识的积极关系，它可能会对人们对灵长类动物的认知产生重大影响，并对保护工作产生影响。
