Picture provided by the interviewee Old animation restoration mainly involves low-level multimedia tasks such as image and video, such as noise reduction, super division, color enhancement, etc. many of these links can greatly improve the restoration efficiency and quality combined with AI's deep learning algorithm. In the past, some time-consuming repair processes were manually processed, such as eliminating defects such as picture scratches and noise. Professional masters can only repair one or two hundred frames a day. AI algorithm combined with powerful computing power can accelerate tens of thousands of times. One side is the old animation of fading, Caton and frame loss, and the other side is the emerging computer algorithm. The old and the new are combined in this way. Repair technology can make the old animation present 4K effect. Let the traditional animation awaken the audience's childhood memory again with high-definition and smooth appearance. "Whether it's repairing cartoons or old images, it's not just to improve its clarity. In the final analysis, what we want to repair is the memory behind these contents and the emotional resonance of generations because of these memories." Ren Lifeng, President of watermelon video, told Science and technology daily. Not long ago, the 4K repair version of six classic animation works, such as Nezha legend, gourd brothers and black cat sheriff, was repaired by the watermelon video platform and launched the watermelon video. In addition, the 4K commemorative version of the classic animation blockbuster "Tianshu Qitan" was released in cinemas across the country on November 5. The traditional animation carrying the common memory of several generations of Chinese people is quietly coming with a new look. AI technology provides more possibilities for animation repair When it comes to animation repair, people's stereotype is that the repairman in the studio cleans, scans and colors the film. It often takes months, even half a year or years to complete a complete set of repair process. In the past, film was the main medium for storing films, including cartoons. In the early stage, nitric acid film base was used, which is a more flammable substance than paper. Although nitric acid film base was basically replaced by acetic acid film base and polyester film base after 1960, no matter which film base (a plastic film, which is the support of photosensitive film), it is difficult to keep at room temperature for a long time. In order to preserve the old animation (old film) more safely, as well as rescue and restore those damaged films, animation repair technology is also constantly innovating. With the rise of deep learning and AI algorithms, "old film" repair has gradually shifted from manual to artificial + Intelligent repair mode. "Traditional manual repair is mostly to remove the dirty spots, scratches and jitters on the film. It just makes the picture cleaner, which is equivalent to 'washing the face' of the picture. It is a icing on the cake processing method. However, AI technology can 'create something out of nothing' and fill in the missing details of the picture. It has higher efficiency and richer means, and also provides more possibilities for animation repair." Zhao Shijie, researcher of volcanic engine multimedia laboratory, told reporters. Taking the well-known "gourd brothers" as an example, Zhao Shijie showed reporters that the film is a combination of ink and paper cutting. The difficulty lies in the diversification of restoration types - we should not only ensure the sharpness of the characters, but also take into account the artistic effect of the ink background. Therefore, AI technology is required to accurately identify the good prospect and background, and use super-resolution and intelligent frame insertion algorithm to complete the conversion of video from low-definition to high-definition and generate intermediate frame content. In addition, the repair of old animation is mainly low-level multimedia tasks such as images and videos, such as noise reduction, super division, color enhancement, etc. many of these links can greatly improve the repair efficiency and quality combined with AI's deep learning algorithm. "In the past, manual processing took a long time to repair some processes, such as eliminating picture scratches, noise and other defects. Professional masters can only repair one or two hundred frames a day. AI algorithm combined with powerful computing power can accelerate tens of thousands of times," Zhao Shijie said. Find a balance between technology and art "Despite the blessing of AI technology, repairing classic old animation is still a heavy and difficult task, and the biggest problem is to retain the artistic style and beauty of the original animation," Zhao Shijie said. The damage of image film mainly includes scratch, noise and mildew. The repair work is to eliminate and correct these problems on the film, restore and improve the original texture of the film as much as possible, and achieve "repair as old". In the process of repairing the gourd brothers, we should not only improve the clarity of the foreground, but also take into account the artistic effect of the ink background, so as to keep the misty artistic sense of the landscape. Zhao Shijie admitted that when repairing gourd brothers, they discussed the scheme with the producer for many times, and achieved the ideal effect after repeated testing and tuning. In order to prevent "accidental injury" to the artistic effect, the algorithm for eliminating defects usually does not set a high intensity, so some defects will be missed and need to be marked manually. For the seriously damaged old films, more manpower is needed to completely eliminate the defects. Zhao Shijie told Science and Technology Daily that at present, AI technology can not completely replace manual labor. On the one hand, the restoration of old animation does not just improve the image quality. The restoration process needs professional artistic guidance and manual assistance to achieve the ideal artistic effect; On the other hand, some multimedia processing technologies without AI intervention will be used in the links such as color enhancement. Not all technical means need to use AI algorithms. The repair of gourd brothers is only a typical example. The volcanic engine repair data show that the algorithm can directly eliminate more than 95% of the defects, and the rest should be supplemented by manual annotation, and then adjust the algorithm for secondary optimization. Industry experts have said that classic works condense the wisdom and spirit of old artists and find a balance between technical empowerment and maintaining artistic effects, which is a key problem that must be solved in the repair of old animation. The restoration of old films is coming into the homes of ordinary people In 2014, after Shanghai International Film Festival initiated 4K restoration unit, 4K restoration came into public view. Subsequently, professional institutions such as China Film Archive and China film digital base successively launched 4K restoration plan. Unlike the repair of lengthy content such as movies and TV dramas, each episode of traditional cartoons such as gourd brothers, monkey fishing for the moon and little tadpole looking for mother is only more than 10 minutes long, and the narrative is complete, so the repair workload is relatively small. Public information shows that since the establishment of Shanghai art film studio, more than 80% of the more than 500 cartoons produced within 30 minutes have been produced, which means that a large number of traditional cartoons can be "reborn" under the existing repair technology. "According to the plan, in the next year, 4K repair versions of 100 traditional cartoons such as ha ha Jing Hua Yuan and Shuk and beta will be launched on watermelon video one after another," Ren Lifeng said. Why should the Internet video platform repair the old animation? Zhao Shijie said that the image quality problem also affects the video platform with a large number of submissions. "In order to improve the user experience, the video platform needs to optimize the low image quality submissions, in which technologies such as artificial intelligence can be used in the repair of classic old movies and old animation." Zhao Shijie said. It is understood that based on the accumulation of technology and capability, technology companies such as volcanic engine have launched the "intelligent processing" toolkit to enhance the image quality of video through AI algorithm, which has been applied to the video creation platform. "The technology is mature, and all video platforms will also open the repair entrance, provide AI repair support for ordinary users free of charge, and repair historical images with historical value free of charge, so as to change the old appearance of video works cherished by the public." Zhao Shijie said. (Xinhua News Agency)