AMC Theatres Will Refuse To Screen AI Short Film After Online Uproar (hollywoodreporter.com) 12
An anonymous reader shares a report: When will AI movies start showing up in theaters nationwide? It was supposed to be next month. But when word leaked online that an AI short film contest winner was going to start screening before feature presentations in AMC Theatres, the cinema chain decided not to run the content.
The issue began earlier this week with the inaugural Frame Forward AI Animated Film Festival announcing Igor Alferov's short film Thanksgiving Day had won the contest. The prize package for included Thanksgiving Day getting a national two-week run in theaters nationwide. When word of this began hitting social media, however, some were dismayed by the prospect of exhibitors embracing AI content, with many singling out AMC Theatres for criticism.
Except the short is not actually programmed by exhibitors, exactly, but by Screenvision Media -- a third-party company which manages the 20-minute, advertising-driven pre-show before a theater's lights go down. Screenvision -- which co-organized the festival along with Modern Uprising Studios -- provides content to multiple theatrical chains, not just AMC. After The Hollywood Reporter reached out to AMC about the brewing controversy, the company issued this statement to THR on Thursday: "This content is an initiative from Screenvision Media, which manages pre-show advertising for several movie theatre chains in the United States and runs in fewer than 30 percent of AMC's U.S. locations. AMC was not involved in the creation of the content or the initiative and has informed Screenvision that AMC locations will not participate."
The issue began earlier this week with the inaugural Frame Forward AI Animated Film Festival announcing Igor Alferov's short film Thanksgiving Day had won the contest. The prize package for included Thanksgiving Day getting a national two-week run in theaters nationwide. When word of this began hitting social media, however, some were dismayed by the prospect of exhibitors embracing AI content, with many singling out AMC Theatres for criticism.
Except the short is not actually programmed by exhibitors, exactly, but by Screenvision Media -- a third-party company which manages the 20-minute, advertising-driven pre-show before a theater's lights go down. Screenvision -- which co-organized the festival along with Modern Uprising Studios -- provides content to multiple theatrical chains, not just AMC. After The Hollywood Reporter reached out to AMC about the brewing controversy, the company issued this statement to THR on Thursday: "This content is an initiative from Screenvision Media, which manages pre-show advertising for several movie theatre chains in the United States and runs in fewer than 30 percent of AMC's U.S. locations. AMC was not involved in the creation of the content or the initiative and has informed Screenvision that AMC locations will not participate."
Episodes (Score:4)
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
Yes it was. That's why people are trying to make something to replace the Disney slop.
I'm disgusted (Score:4, Funny)
Re: (Score:3)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdfztBW_VEE
Re: (Score:1)
It's really not that bad, aside from maybe being a bit too dark for younger audiences. I'm assuming most of the backlash is because a lot of people hate the idea of "art" that has been prompted* into existence. Seems like they don't know the history of animation where, prior to CGI, producing hand-drawn animation could almost be considered a tedious sweatshop job.
* Ironically, we used to consider writing a form of creative expression too, but I suppose once you feed it into a computer that goes right out
Re:I'm disgusted (Score:5, Interesting)
AI or human, I would have thought the same.
Re: (Score:2)
To me it seemed like the typical dark cynical humor the internet usually eats up. Think "Happy Tree Friends meets Space Noir". But just the fact that it was produced using AI evokes a visceral negative reaction from most people.
Most of us here are probably old enough to remember when synthesizers and drum machines were looked down upon and now it's just a normalized part of making music. We're still at the stage with AI where it's being maligned for being seen as lazy or ripping off prior work (like reco
Re: (Score:2)
Personally, sorry to the creatives, I do not care what makes my entertainment media - if is entertaining, that is enough.
I do not expect creatives to boycott computer programs made by an AI and "based on" my prior work that is slurped up.
The Network... (Score:3, Insightful)
Re: (Score:1, Funny)
Hollywood is spending a ton of money (partially funded & directed by gov agencies) on an army of bots and shills to target anyone using AI that may encroach on their territory. Hollywood isn't just about entertainment, it's about manipulating the population to behave a certain way.
Their well-documented close ties with the government speaks to this. Their well-documented close ties to a specific foreign nation speaks to this. They spent a ton of money buying out the threat that TikTok posed to continue gaslighting, they sure aren't going to let AI content creators into the conversation. That's laughable.
So like many others, I ask... where can I stream this?
Get this person some tinfoil...STAT!