The low-cost creative revolution: How technology is making art accessible to everyone

Every year, the Peintresse — a gigantic painter — writes a number on a towering monolith visible on the horizon, and everyone whose age matches that number dies, suddenly reduced to a heap of ashes and petals. Tired of this grim fate, Gustave and his friends set out on an expedition to end the curse. This is the premise of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, the highest-rated game of the year on review aggregator Metacritic — and a massive commercial success: in its first month on the market, it sold 3.5 million copies.

In terms of visuals, aesthetics, ambition, and gameplay systems, it has all the polish of a blockbuster — one of those mega-productions that increasingly rival (and even surpass) the budgets of Hollywood’s biggest films. It’s not uncommon for the most anticipated video games of the year to exceed $200 million in production costs. And yet, Clair Obscur was made for just over $10 million.

Clair Obscur is the latest and most striking example of a growing trend: how technology is drastically reducing the cost of projects that, not long ago, would have required astronomical budgets. From open-source software to artificial intelligence to widely accessible game engines, technology is rewriting the rules across industries like film, animation, and gaming.

“Animation has always been closely linked to technology,” says José Luis Farias, director of NextLab, an incubator for emerging technology projects applied to animation. “The thing is that these changes have always been gradual, and now they’re very rapid,” he explains.

“More important than artificial intelligence is the change in how animation companies operate,” he continues. “Companies are starting to use startup dynamics and technologies that aren’t specific to animation. For example, video game graphics engines like Unreal or Unity. And then there’s distribution: we now have big data that allows us to better understand viewers.”

This year’s Oscar winner for Best Animated Feature was Flow, a Latvian film with a budget of just $3 million, created using Blender, a free open-source animation tool. Farias lists some of today’s most advanced animation technologies: Krita, Godot, Grease Pencil — and, of course, Blender, which is continuously improved by its user community through the support of the non-profit Blender Foundation.

He also highlights a growing trend: virtual reality technology, not for viewing content, but for creating it — allowing artists to draw in 3D space. “It feels more natural to use goggles and your hands,” he says. “After all, a keyboard and computer aren’t the most intuitive tools for drawing. Some studies show that animation studios using VR cut production time by as much as 40%.”

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Trailer for 'Flow'

Could Flow be a turning point that signals the future direction of global animation? “It’s clear that large companies take longer to adapt to new technologies. But small companies can take risks, and with small teams, incredible things can be achieved,” Farias points out. “The best thing, though, is what you gain in creativity. Innovation in the margins, because when you’re far from the usual production and financing centers, you have to be creative. Flow is the product of a very small team in Eastern Europe. Not long ago, it would have been unthinkable.”

This approach to technology isn’t exclusive to animation. In the world of live-action film, The Brutalist is another striking example. The movie, which won three Oscars this year, was made on a modest $10 million budget and used AI to design some of its architectural visuals, which enhanced the film’s visual impact.

“Technological advances mean that there is more and more software available, and it’s more accessible,” says Fernando Rodrigo Olalla, a professor at the Voxel School university digital arts center. “And the democratization of knowledge means that video game, music, animation, and film projects can now be created with smaller budgets and smaller teams.”

He continues: “Today, we can develop new models that optimize resources and, therefore, allow us to take more creative risks. Smaller companies face fewer layers of approval when making decisions, so the choices they can make are riskier. And consumers often reward that risk, because many of these games sell very well,” explains Olalla, who has also worked as a video game producer and developer.

Optimizing resources

“We use some AI, but not much,” François Meurisse, producer of Clair Obscur, tells EL PAÍS via videoconference. “The key is that we were very clear about what we wanted to do and what to invest in. And, of course, technology has allowed us to do things that were unthinkable a short time ago,” explains Meurisse. “Unreal Engine 5’s tools and assets have been very important in improving the graphics, gameplay, and cinematics.”

When he mentions assets, he’s referring to pre-built 3D elements — like a house, a tree, or a path — that can be used to build scenes, significantly reducing production costs.

In the world of video games, it’s not unusual for a masterpiece to emerge from a small team — or even a single mind. Undertale by Toby Fox (2015), Stardew Valley by Eric Barone (2016), and Return of the Obra Dinn (2018) by Lucas Pope are all critically acclaimed titles that can be attributed to the vision and labor of a lone creator. But those were indie projects, visually modest — usually made with pixel art or simple 2D designs, far from the high-end visual polish of major 3D productions.

Clair Obscur is something else entirely — a visually stunning game with the look and feel of a blockbuster. It began as a solo project by Guillaume Broche, who started working with Unreal Engine tools in 2019. In the end, the development team consisted of just 30 people. “It wasn’t easy,” admits producer François Meurisse with a smile, “but technology now means that if you’re clear about what you want to do, you can do it with minimal resources.”

“Very rigid infrastructures stifle creativity, but they’re understandable given the high costs,” adds Olalla. “Today, there are alternatives to creating original and fun products, optimizing expenditure if you combine knowledge and good business acumen.”

He concludes: “When technology advances and becomes more accessible to users, in any sector, it always enables us to do more with less.”

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