Кадр з серіалу «Етернавт»
One of this year’s Netflix sci-fi projects went down in history as the first series to use generative artificial intelligence.
It is an Argentine series by Bruno Stagnaro called «The Eternaut», the plot of which is based on the 50s sci-fi comic book of the same name — a group of people survives a deadly snowfall caused by an alien invasion.
According to Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos, AI was used to create shots of a building collapsing in Buenos Aires — a solution that, in addition to saving money, allowed to speed up the work on the scene by 10 times.
«In fact, this visual effects sequence was completed 10 times faster than it could have been completed using visual, traditional VFX tools and workflows», Sarandos said during Netflix’s quarterly earnings call (via Business Insider). «The creators were delighted, and so were we. And most importantly — the audience».
«The Eternaut» has long held a leading position in the Netflix viewing rankings and has been recognized by the audience — 96% from critics and 89% from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes.
«With a sharply interesting plot and a moderately exciting development of events, decent special effects for a television project, but an uneven narrative pace that makes you bored and unable to tear yourself away from the screen, this Argentine show has enough strength to wait for the second season. So let it snow, let it snow, let it snow», — with ITC reviews.
This is the first time Netflix has used AI to create a full-fledged scene in a TV series, but similar experiences have been experimented with in movies and old shows — in particular, the Mexican drama «Pedro Paramo» (whose budget was reduced to the cost of all visual effects in «The Irish» thanks to AI) and the 1980s sitcom «Another World» (in this case, an attempt to improve the series failed because the distorted hands, faces, and inscriptions have been updated).
Obviously, AI is an effective method of saving money and speeding up work for studios, but the technology is still perceived controversially in the industry — mainly by those who may lose their jobs (in 2023, we witnessed historic Hollywood strikes by actors and screenwriters).
In short, this is yet another example of how artificial intelligence is penetrating almost every aspect of the entertainment industry and our daily lives. Though this time without a scandal: last year, «Megalopolis» Francis Coppola was hated even before its release due to use of fake quotes from critics in the trailer generated by AI; as well as the main contenders for «Oscar», the films «Brutalist» and «Emilia Perez», which predicted the loss of statuettes due to editing the pronunciation of actors with Respeecher technology.