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The Brutalist AI debate is really dumb

The Brutalist AI debate is really dumb

AI Progress in 3D and Character Consistency

January 21, 2025

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I’m just going to say it - the uproar over the minor use of AI in The Brutalist is really dumb. We cover the issue in today’s newsletter, but for me it just highlights an overall misunderstanding of how films are made (guess what - a lot of it is artificial already!) and diminishes the actual work and craftsmanship done by the 100s of people who brought this film to life.

Plus, you want to talk about craft - they shot on film! On VistaVision, a defunct format with only a few working cameras. For a $10 million budget!

We will go more in depth on our thoughts on this in an upcoming podcast (with a special new co-host) - stay tuned.

Joey

New AI Updates Continue to Push 3D & Consistency Control

We've got a slew of new updates in the AI space, focused on character consistency and working with 3D compositing for more fine-tuned camera control.

Here's what should be on your radar:

Krea released image to 3D controls. Turn 2D images into 3D objects, then reframe, rotate, and reposition them in Krea's real-time tool.
Kling released an elements feature. You can upload up to four additional images of people, items, animals, or scenes to include them in your video generation using Kling's 1.6 model. This is similar to what we saw with Luma AI's Character/Reference feature, which was released at the end of last year.
A new tool, Kinetix, teased Character Motion Control. It looks like Runway's Act One, where you give it a live-action reference video, but with full body control. Currently, access is available only through a waitlist.
We also got a teaser of another AI relighting tool, SynthLight. Currently a research paper, it seems to be targeting a similar use case to Switchlight.

These updates hit on two continuing trends we predicted for 2025: more camera and character control for AI outputs, and that 3D space would be the next big area to be disrupted by AI.

SPONSOR MESSAGE

Descript is an easy to use text based video editor for podcasts and talking head videos.

But we've been using it as part of our longer video editing process with Resolve: paper edits.

Sorting through hours of interview footage and building out a radio edit is a pain.

With Descript, I edit videos as quickly as editing a document. I import my footage, get instant transcriptions, and search through hours of content in seconds.

When I hear something I like, I highlight the text and add it to my rough-cut composition. Then I build everything out, copy and paste soundbites like I would with a text document - but the video updates too.

I can also add temp VO, scene notes, and comments. The whole team can be on the same project, working on this in real-time.

When we're done, we export an XML from Descript and bring it into our NLE of choice.

Yes, most editing apps have added some transcription support, but IMO, none of them come close to the speed and ease of use in working with text in Descript.

Try Descript today.

'The Brutalist' AI Debate.

Brady Corbet’s The Brutalist, starring Adrien Brody and Felicity Jones, is making waves not only for its narrative but also for its innovative use of artificial intelligence. The film has ignited a larger debate about AI's growing role in Hollywood, from enhancing efficiency to reshaping creative workflows.

The Breakdown

In an insightful interview at RedShark News with editor Dávid Jancsó, AI tools were employed primarily for two purposes: enhancing the Hungarian dialogue of lead actors Adrien Brody and Felicity Jones, and generating architectural imagery for reference images.

AI Powered Tools

Dialogue and Accent Improvements: The filmmakers utilized the Respeecher AI voice tool to refine the Hungarian pronunciations of Brody and Jones, ensuring their performances sounded authentic to native speakers. AI was specifically used to tweak certain vowels and letters in the Hungarian dialogue, a process described as manual and focused on maintaining the integrity of the actors' original performances.
Architectural Drawings: Judy Becker, the film's production designer, says architecture consultant Griffin Frazen used Midjourney “to create three Brutalist buildings quite quickly” to inspire a sequence featuring architectural designs attributed to Brody's character, László Tóth. However, Corbet later clarified with Deadline that the final images were hand-drawn by artists.
Manual Oversight: Editor Jancsó emphasized that while AI sped up the process, it was not a replacement for human creativity; rather, it assisted in achieving specific technical details efficiently.

Our Take

The debate on AI use in The Brutalist highlights both a broad misunderstanding of the creative process of how films are made and a lack of better terminology for different AI tools. AI is a broad spectrum - from generating an entire video from a text prompt to more granular uses like helping clean up dialogue. The knee-jerk reaction to ‘AI’ is going to set back productive progress in being able to make films like The Brutalist at affordable budgets.

Check out this insightful video on procedurally building the ancient city of Pompeii in Unreal Engine 5. It covers everything from photo-scanning real ruins to creating lush, open-world environments—perfect for anyone into game development, digital art, or Virtual Production / Real-Time Production.

💡 Elon Musk eyeing Intel? Reports suggest Musk might make a move to acquire Intel, potentially shaking up the semiconductor industry.

🧩 AI gets a memory upgrade! Google’s latest neural net architecture rethinks memory components, tackling rising AI costs while boosting efficiency.

⚖️ Hackers sanctioned! The US cracks down on a Chinese firm tied to telecom and Treasury hacks, hitting them with sanctions. Cybercrime just got pricier.

🛠️ Building PCs? Puget Systems' annual review highlights the most reliable hardware used in their workstations for 2024, showcasing brands and models that excelled based on a rigorous qualification process and sales data.

🔥 Shoot more in LA! Local filmmakers are urging Hollywood to increase production in Los Angeles to support the struggling industry following devastating wildfires.

👔 Virtual Production Gigs

Technical Program Manager
Mo-Sys Engineering Ltd
London, UK

Internship - Virtual Production
Orbital Studios
Los Angeles, CA

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