diff --git a/src/java/com/threerings/cast/ActionFrames.java b/src/java/com/threerings/cast/ActionFrames.java
index 66444ef75..3b604c042 100644
--- a/src/java/com/threerings/cast/ActionFrames.java
+++ b/src/java/com/threerings/cast/ActionFrames.java
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 //
-// $Id: ActionFrames.java,v 1.6 2002/09/17 19:11:13 mdb Exp $
+// $Id: ActionFrames.java,v 1.7 2002/12/07 02:04:31 shaper Exp $
 
 package com.threerings.cast;
 
@@ -49,4 +49,10 @@ public interface ActionFrames
      * colorizations applied to the frame images.
      */
     public ActionFrames cloneColorized (Colorization[] zations);
+
+    /**
+     * Returns the estimated memory usage in bytes for all images cached
+     * internally for use by the action frames.
+     */
+    public long getEstimatedMemoryUsage ();
 }
diff --git a/src/java/com/threerings/cast/CharacterManager.java b/src/java/com/threerings/cast/CharacterManager.java
index cc4dccb0f..fb37edcb7 100644
--- a/src/java/com/threerings/cast/CharacterManager.java
+++ b/src/java/com/threerings/cast/CharacterManager.java
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 //
-// $Id: CharacterManager.java,v 1.25 2002/12/07 01:10:25 shaper Exp $
+// $Id: CharacterManager.java,v 1.26 2002/12/07 02:04:31 shaper Exp $
 
 package com.threerings.cast;
 
@@ -184,15 +184,31 @@ public class CharacterManager
 
         // periodically report our action cache performance
         if (!_cacheStatThrottle.throttleOp()) {
+            long size = getEstimatedCacheMemoryUsage();
             int[] eff = _frames.getTrackedEffectiveness();
             Log.debug("CharacterManager LRU " +
-                      "[hits=" + eff[0] + ", misses=" + eff[1] +
-                      ", size=" + _frames.size() + "].");
+                      "[mem=" + (size / 1024) + "k, size=" + _frames.size() +
+                      ", hits=" + eff[0] + ", misses=" + eff[1] + "].");
         }
 
         return frames;
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Returns the estimated memory usage in bytes for all images
+     * currently cached by the cached action frames.
+     */
+    protected long getEstimatedCacheMemoryUsage ()
+    {
+        long size = 0;
+        Iterator iter = _frames.values().iterator();
+        while (iter.hasNext()) {
+            ActionFrames frame = (ActionFrames)iter.next();
+            size += frame.getEstimatedMemoryUsage();
+        }
+        return size;
+    }
+
     /**
      * Generates the composited animation frames for the specified action
      * for a character with the specified descriptor.
diff --git a/src/java/com/threerings/cast/CompositedActionFrames.java b/src/java/com/threerings/cast/CompositedActionFrames.java
index 95979efe5..24cff36cd 100644
--- a/src/java/com/threerings/cast/CompositedActionFrames.java
+++ b/src/java/com/threerings/cast/CompositedActionFrames.java
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 //
-// $Id: CompositedActionFrames.java,v 1.8 2002/09/17 19:11:13 mdb Exp $
+// $Id: CompositedActionFrames.java,v 1.9 2002/12/07 02:04:31 shaper Exp $
 
 package com.threerings.cast;
 
@@ -114,6 +114,21 @@ public class CompositedActionFrames
         throw new RuntimeException("What you talkin' about Willis?");
     }
 
+    // documentation inherited from interface
+    public long getEstimatedMemoryUsage ()
+    {
+        long size = 0;
+        for (int orient = 0; orient < _orientCount; orient++) {
+            for (int ii = 0; ii < _images[orient].length; ii++) {
+                Image image = _images[orient][ii];
+                if (image != null) {
+                    size += ImageUtil.getEstimatedMemoryUsage(image);
+                }
+            }
+        }
+        return size;
+    }
+
     // documentation inherited
     protected Image getFrame (int orient, int index)
     {
diff --git a/src/java/com/threerings/cast/bundle/BundledComponentRepository.java b/src/java/com/threerings/cast/bundle/BundledComponentRepository.java
index aa887540f..cb1d53e21 100644
--- a/src/java/com/threerings/cast/bundle/BundledComponentRepository.java
+++ b/src/java/com/threerings/cast/bundle/BundledComponentRepository.java
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 //
-// $Id: BundledComponentRepository.java,v 1.19 2002/10/18 23:47:27 shaper Exp $
+// $Id: BundledComponentRepository.java,v 1.20 2002/12/07 02:04:31 shaper Exp $
 
 package com.threerings.cast.bundle;
 
@@ -416,6 +416,15 @@ public class BundledComponentRepository
                 _set.cloneColorized(zations), _actseq);
         }
 
+        // documentation inherited from interface
+        public long getEstimatedMemoryUsage ()
+        {
+            throw new RuntimeException(
+                "Can't provide memory usage information since " +
+                "TileSetFrameImage makes use of an underlying tile set " +
+                "and we don't know said tileset's memory usage.");
+        }
+
         /**
          * Fetches the requested tile.
          */
diff --git a/src/java/com/threerings/media/image/ImageManager.java b/src/java/com/threerings/media/image/ImageManager.java
index 804211e9c..8283ffe2e 100644
--- a/src/java/com/threerings/media/image/ImageManager.java
+++ b/src/java/com/threerings/media/image/ImageManager.java
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 //
-// $Id: ImageManager.java,v 1.30 2002/12/07 01:10:25 shaper Exp $
+// $Id: ImageManager.java,v 1.31 2002/12/07 02:04:32 shaper Exp $
 
 package com.threerings.media;
 
@@ -155,9 +155,10 @@ public class ImageManager
     protected void reportCachePerformance ()
     {
         if (!_cacheStatThrottle.throttleOp()) {
-            int size = getCachedImageSize() / 1024;
+            long size = ImageUtil.getEstimatedMemoryUsage(
+                _imgs.values().iterator());
             int[] eff = _imgs.getTrackedEffectiveness();
-            Log.debug("ImageManager LRU [area=" + size + "k pixels" +
+            Log.debug("ImageManager LRU [mem=" + (size / 1024) + "k" +
                       ", size=" + _imgs.size() +  ", hits=" + eff[0] +
                       ", misses=" + eff[1] + "].");
         }
@@ -264,21 +265,6 @@ public class ImageManager
         return dest;
     }
 
-    /**
-     * Returns the estimated size of the cached images as the total area
-     * in pixels occupied by all images.
-     */
-    protected int getCachedImageSize ()
-    {
-        Iterator iter = _imgs.values().iterator();
-        int size = 0;
-        while (iter.hasNext()) {
-            Image image = (Image)iter.next();
-            size += (image.getWidth(null) * image.getHeight(null));
-        }
-        return size;
-    }
-
     /** A reference to the resource manager via which we load image data
      * by default. */
     protected ResourceManager _rmgr;
diff --git a/src/java/com/threerings/media/image/ImageUtil.java b/src/java/com/threerings/media/image/ImageUtil.java
index 28997150e..41638e848 100644
--- a/src/java/com/threerings/media/image/ImageUtil.java
+++ b/src/java/com/threerings/media/image/ImageUtil.java
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 //
-// $Id: ImageUtil.java,v 1.18 2002/11/15 09:29:40 shaper Exp $
+// $Id: ImageUtil.java,v 1.19 2002/12/07 02:04:32 shaper Exp $
 
 package com.threerings.media.util;
 
@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@ import java.awt.image.Raster;
 import java.awt.image.WritableRaster;
 
 import java.util.Arrays;
+import java.util.Iterator;
 
 import com.samskivert.util.StringUtil;
 
@@ -527,6 +528,33 @@ public class ImageUtil
         tbounds.height = lastrow - firstrow + 1;
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Returns the estimated memory usage in bytes for the specified
+     * image.
+     */
+    public static long getEstimatedMemoryUsage (Image image)
+    {
+        int area = image.getWidth(null) * image.getHeight(null);
+        // TODO: we assume an int per pixel for now, but should really
+        // study the sample model if it's a buffered image to do more
+        // intelligent estimation.
+        return (area * 4);
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Returns the estimated memory usage in bytes for all images in the
+     * supplied iterator.
+     */
+    public static long getEstimatedMemoryUsage (Iterator iter)
+    {
+        long size = 0;
+        while (iter.hasNext()) {
+            Image image = (Image)iter.next();
+            size += getEstimatedMemoryUsage(image);
+        }
+        return size;
+    }
+
     /**
      * Obtains the default graphics configuration for this VM.
      */