And animators, and modelers, and shaders, and special effects technicians, and the engineers that write the software they use, and the sysadmins that support their networks etc. The names on the movie poster are the tip of the iceberg.
It's not the number of contributors that count but the total cost of their contribution. That tip actually costs a lot. The good old Pareto rule may well apply here as well.
But however it is, if the market doesn't pay for it, then it's not needed. Also if the market is only willing to pay a fraction then there is probably a need for some innovation so that they can cut the costs.
I worked at Pixar from 2000-2010 and I can tell you that a really good director definitely earns his/her salary. A good director can mean the difference between a bad, overbudget film and an on-budget success. You're going to have a lot harder time cutting costs than you might think too. Salaries dominate the budget of films like Avatar and Toy Story 3 and the kind of talent it takes to make those films can't currently be had for less. Maybe you don't care if films like that disappear from the market but you should at least acknowledge that is what will happen if DVD and ticket sales continue to slide. None of the alternatives currently on the table compare.
