CGI

Or cgi

[see-jee-ahy]

abbreviation

Computers.

1. computer-generated images; computer-generated imagery: digitally created graphics used in movies and other visual media, often in the form of 3D animation: null CG

   The latest movie in the franchise uses more practical effects and less CGI than its predecessors.

2. Common Gateway Interface: a protocol for instructing a server to execute a user-generated script on an interactive website, such as when a user enters a query using an online form and receives information retrieved from a database (often used attributively).

   CGI enhances the utility of a site by enabling user interaction.

   A CGI script allows users of the site to search for information on a particular local physician.

CGI

abbreviation

1. computer-generated image or imagery

2. common gateway interface

Word History and Origins

Origin of CGI¹

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

Kosinski was trusted with blockbusters from his debut, 2010’s “Tron: Legacy,” and in 2022 broke through with “Top Gun: Maverick,” which strapped Tom Cruise and other insurance liabilities into actual fighter jets as an alternative to relying on CGI.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Terry used the phrase Tuesday in his introduction to a resuscitation of 1971’s “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory,” which debuts this week at Inglewood’s Cosm with modern, CGI animation, aiming to emphasize the whimsy and childlike wonder of the Gene Wilder picture.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

US star Brie Larson joins Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy and Jack Black in the voice cast of "The Super Mario Galaxy Movie", a CGI animation set for release in April 2026.

Read more on Barron's

The effects budget has been spent where it matters, with some detailed evocations of late 19th century Chicago and Washington that don’t scream CGI.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

"AI and CGI can do all sorts of things, but one of the great bonuses of cinema is recognisable settings," says Mr O'Brien.

Read more on BBC