The application of virtual digital humans in the development of intangible cultural heritage

Mondo Culture Updated on 2024-02-01

【Abstract】In today's rapid development of science and technology, information technology and artificial intelligence technology make the "people" in the digital world come alive through all-round digitization and visualization, and become the "new messengers" of spreading the excellent traditional Chinese culture. In a variety of scenarios, digital virtual humans are frequently "out of the circle". The virtual digital human is developed and designed through cutting-edge technologies such as computer graphics, motion capture, graphics rendering, deep learning, speech synthesis, artificial intelligence, etc., and is an interactive virtual image with the appearance, expression, language, and behavior of a "person". In the new field, they play a variety of virtual identities and interact with people in a multi-level and all-round way, and are gradually active in online platforms and offline commercial consumption scenarios, providing more possibilities for the digital transformation and diversified development of the cultural field.

Keywords: virtual digital human, intangible cultural heritage, inheritance and development, CLC Number: G206 Document Identification Code: A

The application value of virtual digital humans in the inheritance of intangible cultural heritage

First, open up new space for the inheritance of intangible cultural heritage. Intangible cultural heritage is an important part of the excellent traditional Chinese culture and a vivid testimony of the continuous inheritance of Chinese civilization. The virtual digital human has the characteristics of spatial virtuality and the endowment of personality and behavioral characteristics, which provides a variety of possibilities for the inheritance and development of intangible cultural heritage. Virtual reality, artificial intelligence, deep learning, human-computer interaction, computer graphics rendering and many other digital technologies have gradually become an important support for cross-media narrative practice. In terms of the innovative development and effective inheritance of intangible cultural heritage, the construction of a story system centered on the role of virtual digital humans is a new direction with great development potential, especially its high degree of interactivity, controllability and personification, which can bridge the "gap" between the intangible cultural heritage that appears in the traditional communication pattern due to time and space differences, and science and technology can transform the form and content of intangible cultural heritage into digital narrative scenes with diversified presentation forms and multi-dimensional sensory expressions, so as to improve the communication effect. The story universe based on the different fictional characters of virtual digital humans provides a necessary carrier for broadening the inheritance and development path of intangible cultural heritage. This digital technology empowers intangible cultural heritage and realizes the model of "double creation" has become an important medium for the transformation of its intrinsic economic value, helping to realize the organic unity of the social value and economic value of intangible cultural heritage. The virtual digital human "Tianyu" based on "Dunhuang Feitian" has become a typical example. The virtual digital person "Tianyu" can not only "speak" and "act", but also interact online, which not only attracts countless fans on many digital platforms in China, but also attracts the attention of foreign people. A series of short dramas based on the cross-media narrative practice exploration of "Tianyu", such as "Tracing a Thousand Walls", have also been loved by the majority of netizens. The vivid display of the digital virtual person "Tianyu" in the short play has built a deeply immersive cultural narrative space, allowing audiences of different ages and cultural backgrounds to feel the profound connotation of China's intangible cultural heritage in an all-round and intuitive way.

Second, promote the creative transformation of intangible cultural heritage. In order to occupy a place in the digital world, the virtual digital human of intangible cultural heritage should be supported by the corresponding cultural character, which is inseparable from both technological and cultural factors. We will further promote the innovation and improvement of virtual digital human-related technologies, and continue to lead virtual digital humans from human-driven to intelligence-driven through the application of emerging digital technologies, so as to provide a more solid foundation for connecting virtual and reality. At the same time, the virtual digital humans of intangible cultural heritage rely more on the injection of culture. The thoughts, thinking, expressions, etc. of virtual digital humans all depend on the quality and quantity of cultural injection. For example, in August 2022, the design and creation of the "3D surreal digital human Su Dongpo" launched by Zhonghua Book Company, in the stage of establishing the image of the digital human "Su Dongpo", firstly, relying on the ancient book big data center to conduct massive searches, and combing a large number of ancient book text data involving Su Dongpo's appearance and image in a scientific retrieval way, laying an objective foundation for portraying the static image of the character; The second is to combine the use of image search and correlation technology to synthesize more than 100 paintings involving Su Dongpo from the Song to the Qing Dynasty and form a rational understanding of Su Dongpo's appearance and image; The third is the "authenticity of ancient books" of Su Dongpo's appearance and image established based on the application of the above technology, which is reviewed by a team of experts in colleges and universities, relevant professional organizations and cultural fields, so as to further enrich the understanding of the details of "3D surreal digital human Su Dongpo" and form a systematic understanding. In the "motion capture molding" stage that makes the "3D surreal digital human Su Dongpo" move, the creative team comprehensively uses a variety of digital technologies and forms an integrated innovation practice. It can be seen that the creation process of "3D Surreal Digital Human Su Dongpo" is a new integrated process that integrates the two fields of basic academic research and applied art creation. Among them, the systematic combing and in-depth research of literature and artworks related to the theme have become an important support for the application of new technologies.

Third, expand the space for the re-creation of intangible cultural heritage. The vitality and influence of intangible cultural heritage lies in the observation and integration of reality. In recent years, one of the deep reasons why the "Guochao" series of cultural and creative products have been widely loved by young people is that the elements of intangible cultural heritage are organically integrated into the lives of young people, and the intangible cultural heritage has been recreated to form a vivid thing of the times, highlighting and publicizing the vitality and personality of young people. At the same time, to tell the story of "national tide" well, it is necessary to re-excavate and re-create the excellent traditional Chinese cultural content, including intangible cultural heritage, in the popular national style and fashion environment, so as to continuously improve the cultural taste of commercial marketing and build a very attractive new digital consumption scene. In the era of digital economy, virtual digital human IP is increasingly favored by many brands due to its friendly appearance, high attractiveness and recognition, and diversified user contact channels, which can effectively expand the recreation space of excellent traditional Chinese culture, including intangible cultural heritage.

The application status of virtual digital humans in the inheritance and development of intangible cultural heritage

At present, the virtual digital human technology is not yet fully mature, and the achievement of intelligence-driven goals still needs to go through a long process. Although virtual digital humans have been able to rely on digital technologies such as artificial intelligence to achieve efficient communication between humans and machines, in many scenarios, it is still difficult to effectively display the emotional expression in the process of communication between humans, especially the non-verbal aspects. In addition, whether emotional identity can be truly achieved often depends on the feelings, temperature, experience and depth of cultural content that people directly feel through virtual digital humans, which is obviously not a simple technical issue.

When some companies use virtual digital humans for brand marketing and promotion, they seem to be showing the value of intangible cultural heritage, but in fact, they are piecing together irrelevant content. For example, in the festival commercial advertisements of some corporate brands, although the content of Chinese excellent traditional culture has been displayed and elaborated, in order to cater to the current commercial characteristics of fast consumption and fast traffic, it only uses the content of intangible cultural heritage as a commercial gimmick, and does not find the point of convergence between it and product value by mining the spiritual connotation of intangible cultural heritage. In order to make profits, some social capital and a small number of digital platform enterprises have launched rebellious, provocative, and spoofed virtual digital human IP characters and images to consumers by playing "edge ball", which has a negative impact on the inheritance and development of intangible cultural heritage.

The imperfection of laws and regulations in the field of virtual digital humans is an important factor affecting the effective application of virtual digital humans in the inheritance and development of intangible cultural heritage. The application of digital scenarios has potential ethical and legal risks, and its impact cannot be ignored. The metaverse itself is an advanced comprehensive form of development in the Internet and digital technology, and the virtual world it creates is easy to misalign the identity consciousness of people in the physical world, and the temporary "advantages" brought about by technological development may become a catalyst for moral anomie. For example, "AI face swapping" is essentially an interference and infringement of citizens' right to portrait reputation enjoyed in accordance with the law, which poses a challenge to the ethical order relationship in reality.

The application path of virtual digital humans in the inheritance and development of intangible cultural heritage

Equal emphasis is placed on scientific and technological research and emotional design. Guiding the research and development of science and technology from the levels of instinct, behavior and reflection can give full play to the effectiveness of virtual digital humans in the inheritance and development of intangible cultural heritage. The so-called instinctive layer refers to the audience's visual direct response to the dissemination of relevant products and information, and this instinctive response often precedes the individual's rational thinking and logical judgment because of its directness. The behavior layer is generated due to the interaction between the audience and the product in behavior, with a certain degree of rationality and logic, and at the same time, it also penetrates the relevant value thinking. With the passage of time, when the audience has their own independent judgment and memory of the unique connotation and brand difference of the product from the rational level based on the results of the behavioral layer, this enters the reflection layer. Under the effect of a certain situational triggering mechanism, the audience will trigger emotional resonance. Based on the above analysis, in order to smoothly realize the transformation from "tool" to "identity" of intangible cultural heritage, in the design and creation of intangible cultural heritage, we can start from the above three levels of emotional design to break through the practical constraints of human-computer interaction. This requires continuous research and development and application of emerging digital technologies to enhance the emotional design of digital virtual humans, and then rely on promoting the performance of simulated characters in different scenarios to further conform to the behavior and cognitive laws of natural persons, so as to lay the foundation for the "three-level" appeal of the audience.

Dig out the spiritual core and grasp the value demand. New technologies represented by digital technology can improve the efficiency of intangible cultural heritage, while the depth and breadth of the inner spirit of intangible cultural heritage restrict the inheritance and development of intangible cultural heritage. Based on the complementary relationship between the two, in the process of designing and creating virtual digital humans of intangible cultural heritage, it is necessary to highlight the aesthetic elements in intangible cultural heritage by excavating high-quality content that can reflect the spiritual value of intangible cultural heritage, find the connection point that is relevant to the times, and give it a vivid connotation of modernization. China's intangible cultural heritage carries the long and magnificent history of Chinese civilization and the national character of the Chinese nation's unremitting self-improvement, and must be interpreted in a contemporary way that conforms to the logic of contemporary practice and the spirit of values. Therefore, some digital platforms and enterprises should first consider the integrity and contemporaneity of the internal cultural elements and spiritual core of intangible cultural heritage when creating the IP image and personality of the intangible cultural heritage, and using it to produce cultural content or carry out brand marketing and publicity, so as to accurately convey the connotation of the intangible cultural heritage on the basis of grasping the essence of contemporary needs.

Determine technical standards to avoid potential risks. The first is to adhere to the concept of standards and system construction, accelerate the construction of a virtual digital human technical standard system under the overall framework of the construction of digital China, improve the relevant use standards and safety management systems, and clarify the regulatory responsibilities of the market, industries, and market entities in accordance with the requirements of social governance innovation, and institutionalize and proceduralize them, so as to form an overall joint force of coordinated governance, risk prevention and resolution, and social supervision. The second is to improve the efficiency of supervision. In handling cases of violations and crimes involving virtual digital persons with clear legal entities, relevant departments may refer to the relevant legal systems in the field of internet information security governance with the "Cybersecurity Law of the People's Republic of China" as the backbone to determine the legal responsibility of relevant entities, explore the establishment of punitive damages rules in the field of internet ecology and order, and establish clear bottom lines and rules for creators, displayers, internet platforms, and other relevant parties of virtual digital persons. The third is to give full play to the role of group standards in the self-discipline of relevant industries, and further guide and standardize the relevant behaviors of enterprises, platforms and individuals in the whole life cycle of virtual digital humans, especially to implement the rights, obligations and responsibilities determined by relevant laws and regulations through clear codes of conduct, improve the certification system based on relevant standards, promote the formation of data compliance and hierarchical protection systems, better avoid the risk of anomie brought about by technological development, and promote the sustainable development of the whole industry.

All in all, in today's rapid development of science and technology, information technology and artificial intelligence technology make "people" in the digital world come alive through all-round digitization and visualization, and become the "new messenger" of spreading the excellent traditional Chinese culture. Through cutting-edge technologies such as computer graphics, motion capture, graphics rendering, deep learning, speech synthesis, and artificial intelligence, virtual digital humans play a variety of virtual identities and interact with people in a multi-level and all-round way, and are active in major online platforms and offline commercial consumption scenarios, providing more possibilities for the digital transformation and diversified development of the cultural field.

Author: Chang Hong, Lecturer, School of Culture, Tourism and Journalism, Shanxi University of Finance and Economics).

2024 Travel Guide

Related Pages