Home > Business > Japanese Modelling Agency to Fire Human Models

Japanese Modelling Agency to Fire Human Models

"While human models are subject to disadvantages such as aging, unpreventable blemishes and unreliability, CG models will satisfy our clients' demands 100 percent, without fail," the statement read.

Asked to comment by local media, Esprit's director of public relations, Tohru Watanabe, said that it was a purely financial decision.

"Our rendered models are indistinguishable from human models, and more beautiful," he said, speaking in Japanese to local TV station TBS. "Unlinke human models, rendered models require no pension fund or healthcare payments, and they're never late. Undeniably, it makes better business sense to use rendered models."

Esprit Models is a leading modelling agency in Japan and has supplied models for commercials by well-known domestic and international brands, such as Nissan, Coca-Cola, Sony and McDonalds.

In November, 2009, the Tokyo-based company entered into a cross shareholding agreement with Silver SFX Co., a special effects house, and since early 2010 had been supplying CG models for about one-fifth of its orders. The proportion of models generated by computer is to be increased in a "natural progression" until CG models fill all of the company's orders, according to the statement on the company's website.

Technology analyst Nick Oba clarified that the quality of the CG images wasn't the issue. "A number of companies now have the technology to render a life-like figure cost-effectively," he said, speaking via satellite link from Los Angeles. "What's amazing is that they've developed the knowhow to seamlessly insert those computer models into photos or footage, without having to render the products advertised or background such as trees and buildings."

"This is the digital realm starting to merge with the physical world," Oba said. "And it's happening a good four or five years ahead of what anyone expected."

An Esprit company representative, contacted by telephone, refused to state exactly how many models would be affected by the change, but added that being "beautiful people," none would experience trouble finding new jobs, "perhaps in the food service sector."