Hollywood stars are speaking out in protest after an “AI actress” named Tilly Norwood attracted agency interest.
Norwood is an entirely virtual creation owned by Xicoia, a talent studio attached to the AI production company Particle6.
Deadline reported yesterday that several Hollywood talent agents are interested in signing Norwood.
Norwood is an entirely virtual creation owned by Xicoia
Current US law has been reluctant to allow copyright for AI generated works. At least until this industry throws gobs of cash at Congress and a motor coach at scotus.
So what’s to stop somebody from recreating “Tilly” for their own use?
Even if the AI output itself is public domain, you can trademark the characters involved and you can copyright the work that the output is a part of. This isn’t likely to be a big obstacle. If I generate an image of Mario, for example, the fine folks at Nintendo can still get on my case about it. And if I’m making a movie and the Mona Lisa comes into shot the movie remains my IP regardless.
This doesn’t seem like something that benefits the majority of people.
If it was like “here’s free (or at least legitimately cheap) access to some virtual actors. Go make the movie of your dreams, kids!” maybe that would be cool. Maybe there are people out there with brilliant ideas that are blocked by not having real actors to act for them. Maybe.
But this just seems like another way for the rich to keep more wealth for themselves.
Seems like it could be like music production software becoming widely available. Now you don’t need to get a drummer, a bass player etc. Together to make music, you can just make it at home on your computer. It enables lower level people to get off the ground as they now have the tools that the pros do, you want a saxophone but don’t know anyone in town who can play or can’t afford one, just use a synth that sounds like one. Once you get signed though and you have a label giving you studio time you might hire an actual saxophone player because it sounds better.
Same with movies, AI could be helpful in making small low/no budget indie movies, but I don’t think it’s at the same quality as real actors for big budget movies where people expect more, so maybe the wealthy studio execs won’t benefit from it much right now.
You can already hire dirt cheap nobody actors for your indie passion project by putting up a poster near any college with a liberal arts program. Or use a website. Hell, there are even carve outs to stay full union.
But if you have money to make a “real” movie? You have money to pay talent.
But this just seems like another way for the rich to keep more wealth for themselves.
Yup. Insert AlwaysHasBeen.meme here.
That last sentence alone has described the entire American business sector for the past 10 years or so
past
1050 years or soAnd even further back than that, but post WW2 I feel like progress was made.
If this agency normalizes AI actors for the big movie theatres it’ll help the smaller ones too, IMO.
It’s already happening that people are using AI to make the movies of their dreams (well, short form video, at any rate - The Adventures of Reemo Green is a recent example that comes to mind, I would dearly love to see a TV series of this guy). They don’t need to use an AI actor agency, but they do have to face the “ew, AI!” Reaction to their work. If the big studios start doing it that’ll make things easier for them.
Also acting (among other creative fields) is where you see most of the actual rags to riches stories, and the bourgeoisie really wants to kick the remaining ladders behind them.
Everything about this “news” story would have been easy for Tilly’s owners to orchestrate as publicity for their projects
Hollywood stars are the last people I will feel sad for. AI can go ahead and replace them all.
Hollywood “stars” are the very very few actors who have made it big. While you may know hundreds of famous actors, there are 170,000 in SAG and way more just trying to get by acting in small parts.
While this is a flashy headline/“product” AI is quickest to replace those with less money, lower status, and smaller roles. I’m glad actors with a platform are using it to stand against this.
It’s a very, very steep and slippery slope though.
But with AI actors, where will we get celebrity drug addiction and crime news? Who is going to give us medical advice?
fair point. I take it all back.
What does this even mean? You can’t put other actors on screen with it. The only movies you could make would be garbage like Ice Cube’s War of the Worlds.
Just need a “green man” and it’d be no different than CGI…
Sure they can. There have been animated characters next to live characters for decades.
Nah-uh! Gamma rays just has that effect on real genuine human persons.
Calling it now: literally only gooners will be interested in this character, no one else will care
Check youtube shorts. Videos have filters now to make them look like AI. Kids on youtube are already brainwashed into thinking AI is fun. AI actors and models are like any other product. If you hype it enough kids will love it.
What are the filters to make it look like AI? I’m not sure what that means. When I hear “looks like AI”, I imagine “has 7 fingers per hand, inconsistent art styles, and has really weird things when you look closely at the details”
Hmm…I didn’t downvote you, but I don’t think that’s designed to look like AI. I’m not well-versed enough in film to suggest what look they are going for though.
Of course it is designed to look like AI.
The lighting, the colors, blurred background, unnaturally smooth skin, the weird shine.
I’m not seeing it. I think what we’re seeing is the video trying to match an art style that is highly “over manufactured”, which AI can look like as well.
I think it’s kind of like Botox in video form.
All these virtual persona companies are going to fail. It’s basically just grifters trying to make a quick buck on the new technology.
Anyone can create an “AI actress” in a few clicks now. Should Hollywood be worried? Yes, but that isn’t a bad thing and it’s definitely not these fake talent agencies that are going to reap the rewards.
I don’t see a problem. Mickey Mouse isn’t a real mouse either.
Mickey Mouse is at least animated by real humans. They are in a way the actors that create the performance.
Honestly I think it might be best to simply ban AI actors looking like humans.
I fear it may cause even more unrealistic standards than having almost perfect actors, and people may feel even less as part of a society than they do now.I can see how it can be practical and cheaper and all that, but if the depiction of humans stop to be actual human, I think we may be walking into a whole new set of problems in the future.
CGI actors, too.
And stunt men, if you’re going to depict a famous actor doing something dangerous it’s false advertising to have someone else doing it for him.
We should probably ban makeup as well.
Eventually it’s gonna happen.
We’re not there yet, and we’ll start seeing it from the bottom up when it actually happens.
It’s already used for crowds, next is extras walking down the street, then once it gets to speaking lines the stars will have to worry. The won’t be replaced till last, but eventually making a movie won’t involve a single camera.
It’s being used by the government to fake the president. If it can fool the dumb country bumpkins it can be used in Hollywood. Future media is gonna be lifeless and uncanny.
Are you implying that the bearded belly dancer on the beaches of the golden Trump Riviera was AI?
Trump recently did an official announcement using an ai avatar to hide his stroke-face
We might actually get a proper indie scene. AI is going to pull us out of the Hollywood bullshit era.
Soulless marvel character showcases disguised as feature films won’t cut it anymore.
There’s always a proper indie scene, it’s just nobody cares about it.
Soulless marvel character showcases disguised as feature films won’t cut it anymore.
I already don’t believe it should cut it, but the masses are the stupid masses.
We might actually get a proper indie scene. AI is going to pull us out of the Hollywood bullshit era.
And how do you propose this would happen?
If anybody can build a scene in blender with some rough models and untextured puppets, then generate over that into something that looks like movie quality, the studios just lost their whole industry.
They have a monopoly because of the costs associated, AI destroys those costs essentially. It’s also the main reason why these “talent agencies” will fail, AI actors are going to be a dime a dozen.
We’re not there yet, but its prettty decent already for amateurs or low-stakes proffesionals. Like this
Influencers using horizontal video? Pft. So unrealistic.
Yeah, how is Harvey Weinstein supposed to molest an AI?
Won’t anybody think of the children?
After only a second of thought, AI child actors seems like an alternative to exploiting real children, but im sure thats being generous and theres a million reasons why it would suck
we have cgi animals in movies, so cgi children isn’t that far-fetched of an idea
The real Turing test
VR headset and a fleshlight.
Considering what his allegedly looks like, maybe he should’ve washed his toys more —or, at all. 🤢
It’s just business, sweetie.
Don’t get in bed with businesspeople.
May you live in stupid times.
HA that’s funny, not even the people behind the original Chinese curse probably thought such evil was even possible, or maybe they thought it would be funny?
Goddam I wish these were merely “interesting” times.
Thumbnail has a framed movie poster of my favorite film of all time:
“fffff”
dont forget the sequel, “gggggg”
While it’s stupid as fuck, paying an actor millions to play pretend is just as dumb.
