Runway’s timely application did “help Lionsgate Studios, its filmmakers, directors, and other artistic talent augment their work” and “generate visual video that can be more iterated using Runway’s suite of stable tools”, according to a press release announcing the deal.
If that sounds like it might pique the interest of those who have been watching AI’s impact on designers ‘ job, it certainly did. Writer-director Justine Bateman, who was vocally critical of AI during the Hollywood strikes last year, made a post on X that almost sounded warning:” Over a year ago, I told you that I assumed the studios were NOT sending lawyers to the #A I companies over their models injesting ]sic ] their copyrighted films, because they wanted their own custom versions. Also, these you go”.
If anything, the new agreement could serve as a test of the AI protections that unions like the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists ( SAG-AFTRA ) received during their contract negotiations with studios last year. According to those safeguards, studios may obtain players ‘ consent before creating a digital copy of them. Because, according to Lionsgate and Runway, the application will be used solely for preproduction and postproduction job, it’s within the world of that deal, says Matthew Sag, a professor of law and AI at Emory University.
The movie industry has used all kinds of technology and automation for decades, Sag says, but it seems like a considerable development. ” So you could even see this as a natural progression. The difference is that more of what we once believed to be inventive and creative are now being made up.
The governor of California, Gavin Newsom, signed legislation that would prevent players from having their job cloned without permission, the day before the news. Set to take effect next month, Newsom’s shift comes at a time when film game workers, particularly tone and motion-caption actors, are on strike, partly over AI protections.
The California governor stated in a statement that” we continue to wade through undiscovered place” when it comes to how AI and online media are changing the entertainment industry. This regulation strengthens safeguards for employees and how their image can or cannot be used while ensuring the business can continue to thrive.
Even if the work of actors and other performers wo n’t be impacted by the new tools, it’s intriguing to consider the potential impact that new generative AI tools might have on those involved in both preproduction and postproduction. Per the WSJ report, Lionsgate first plans to employ Runway’s practice tool for things like screenwriting. Finally, the studio plans to use it to make physical consequences for the big screen. Although it’s difficult to predict for sure whether efficiency tools will create work or destroy them, Sag believes it’s possible that they will have an impact on jobs.
According to Runway CEO Cristóbal Valenzuela, while, they will not. ” Our main idea is that AI, like any powerful tool, may drastically accelerate your progress through innovative challenges”, Valenzuela says. It accomplishes this by assisting with specific tasks, never by replacing complete work. Designers have the ability to control their instruments forever.
Like Valenzuela, Lionsgate vice chair Michael Burns sees AI as a gift to screenwriting, one that will help the theater “develop cutting edge, capital useful content creation opportunities”, he said in a statement, noting that several of Lionsgate’s filmmakers were excited about the new tools without naming which filmmakers. ” We view AI as a great tool for augmenting, enhancing, and supplementing our current operations”. What impact will it have on their upcoming operations is unknown.
