The Rise of AI-Powered Stars: Big Money and Risks (Hollywood Reporter)

Hollywood Reporter: The Rise of AI-Powered Stars: Big Money and Risks. “As the Hollywood guilds grapple with the potential for generative AI to transform film and TV production, tech firms are using the power of celebrities to introduce the underlying technology to the masses. ‘There’s a huge possible business there and I think that’s what YouTube and the music companies see, for better or for worse,’ says Gavin Purcell, the former executive producer of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon who now hosts the AI for Humans podcast. ‘The Facebook’s and the YouTubes are trying to get people onboarded with what they see as the next UGC, user generated content world, which is this AI stuff.’”

Tech Xplore: Actors union explains AI guardrails in strike deal

Tech Xplore: Actors union explains AI guardrails in strike deal. “The Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) reached a deal with studios like Disney and Netflix this week to end its nearly four-month strike. Its board members on Friday voted 86 percent in favor of ratifying the agreement. Besides a seven percent minimum pay increase, and a new $40-million-per-year fund to transfer a portion of revenues for hit shows from studios to actors, AI guardrails were a key part of talks.”

New York Times: Martin and Francesca Scorsese, TikTok’s Dynamic Duo

New York Times: Martin and Francesca Scorsese, TikTok’s Dynamic Duo. “Step aside, Leonardo DiCaprio. Martin Scorsese seems to have found a new muse: Oscar, his daughter Francesca Scorsese’s aptly named miniature schnauzer. In a playful video posted to her TikTok last week, the director — just days before the release of his latest epic, ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ — conducted a very important, very serious audition with Oscar.”

Michigan Daily: How the SAG-AFTRA strike has changed the fabric of our social media feeds

Michigan Daily: How the SAG-AFTRA strike has changed the fabric of our social media feeds. “There have been several major side effects of the strike, most notably its massive effects on TV and movie production. Writing and filming for popular TV shows and anticipated movie releases has been heavily delayed as negotiations have continued. The screen is not the only place that has experienced such tangible side effects from the strike. In fact, the place where I have noticed the most change since the strikes began is not on the big screen, but in the composition of my social media feed — specifically what is missing from it.”

The Verge: TikTok accidentally blocked Hollywood writers strike videos while casting a QAnon net

The Verge: TikTok accidentally blocked Hollywood writers strike videos while casting a QAnon net. “TikTok videos about the Hollywood writers strike were temporarily blocked as the platform attempted to moderate QAnon conspiracy theories. Media Matters for America, a nonprofit media research group, reported today that TikTok users were unable to search for content related to the Writers Guild of America strike.”

NPR: Movie extras worry they’ll be replaced by AI. Hollywood is already doing body scans

NPR: Movie extras worry they’ll be replaced by AI. Hollywood is already doing body scans. “After four weeks of working as a background actor on the Disney+ series WandaVision during the pandemic, Alexandria Rubalcaba was told by the production crew to report to a tractor trailer. Dozens of other background actors were wrangled to the same site, where, one by one, they were told to step in front of a series of cameras on metal rigs behind glass.”

The Wrap: ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ Costumes Highlight Slew of Film Academy Museum Acquisitions

The Wrap: ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ Costumes Highlight Slew of Film Academy Museum Acquisitions. “Included among the additions are costumes from the most recent Best Picture Oscar winner ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’; more than 600 rare silent film posters; personal film collections and film-related materials from producer Gale Anne Hurd, director Harold Ramis, filmmaker Gregg Araki and film scholar Kevin Brownlow; conceptual art for ‘E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial’; and more than 150 hand-painted animation artworks dating back to 1932, donated by Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw.”

Striking Writers Rally On Social Media; “Don’t Believe The Spin That’s Already Coming Out. We’re Going To Fight” (Deadline)

Deadline: Striking Writers Rally On Social Media; “Don’t Believe The Spin That’s Already Coming Out. We’re Going To Fight”. “Minutes after the Writers Guild of America declared it was on strike, members lit up social media with vows to stay strong as they prepare to hit the picket lines on Tuesday.”

The Playlist: Academy Sets New Social Media, Screenings Rules For 2024 Oscars

The Playlist: Academy Sets New Social Media, Screenings Rules For 2024 Oscars. “In regard to social media, The Academy reiterated that, obviously, members can post about performances, films, etc. What they cannot do is reveal their own voting preferences, decisions, and strategies, or discuss eligibility requirements. This is in response to Frances Fisher, who used her Instagram to instruct fellow Acting branch members on how to rank their votes in order to help [actress Andrea] Riseborough get a nomination.”

Deadline: Douglas Foundation Archive Adds 10,000 Personal Items From Anne And Kirk, Goes Online Fully Digitized For Public Access

Deadline: Douglas Foundation Archive Adds 10,000 Personal Items From Anne And Kirk, Goes Online Fully Digitized For Public Access. “Now the Douglas Foundation, which was created by Kirk and Anne in 1964 when Michael was just 20, has just launched for the first time a high resolution on-line library of documents, photos and memorabilia digitized from Anne’s private archives of more than seventy years.”

Los Angeles Times: A.I. is here, and it’s making movies. Is Hollywood ready?

Los Angeles Times: A.I. is here, and it’s making movies. Is Hollywood ready?. “Artificial intelligence will do to motion pictures what Photoshop did to still ones, said Robert Wahl, an associate computer science professor at Concordia University Wisconsin who’s written about the ethics of CGI, in an email. ‘We can no longer fully trust what we see.’”