Weta FX, Netflix and a Korean director discuss AI in film production at Busan

Mixed · 2Kimball Thurston, chief technology officer of Weta FX, Korean director Kang Yoon-sung and Netflix's senior director of APAC production discussed the strengths and limits of AI tools in production at the Busan International Film Festival. 1 2 Mixed · 2Variety reported that Netflix and the MPA co-hosted the session, which was part of Creative Asia, the Netflix and BIFF programme for emerging Asian talent, and that critic Yun Sung-eun moderated; the Netflix executive is named Sung Q Lee by Deadline and Lee Sung-gyun by Variety. 2 1 Mixed · 2According to Variety, the Netflix executive said AI had been used on around 300 Netflix titles, in previsualisation, production design, set-dressing concepts, editorial and VFX; Deadline reported use in previsualisation, editorial and VFX. 2 1

Mixed · 2He said Netflix works under strict internal guidelines and is not chasing speed or AI for its own sake, and that the human touch remains essential. 1 2 Mixed · 2Netflix showed a reel from its VFX studio Eyeline; Variety added that a second clip showed AI and VFX producing large crowd scenes for the Netflix India title "Glory" that would normally have been dropped under tight budgets and schedules. 1 2 Mixed · 2Kang, who co-directed "Run to the West", described as Korea's first AI-assisted feature, said AI lets genre films overcome budget limits; for his upcoming Netflix film "The Gulf of Aden" he said the saving was about 40% (Deadline quoted him as 30-40%), from simpler shooting and a shorter production period as well as lower CGI costs. 1 2

Left · 1Variety reported that Kang's "Gulf of Aden" test clip was made entirely with AI using the Chinese software Kling at reduced quality, and that current tools can output 4K at 10-bit colour or higher. 2 Mixed · 2Kang said he does not think AI can currently replace actors because it struggles to convey human emotion, and told Variety that the emotional quality of AI footage has arguably worsened even as image quality is very high, because it removes collaborative input. 1 2 Mixed · 2Thurston said Weta uses AI at a measured pace, for image clean-up and for generating motion in crowd scenes rather than generating images, and that problems remain, notably colour range: models trained on video may not render the right shade of red. 1 2

Mixed · 2Thurston called for better interfaces than text prompts for visual artists and for more collaboration between technology companies and creatives, and said the point is not to replace actors. 1 2 Left · 1Variety added that Thurston described the denoiser behind his second Academy Scientific and Technical Award as "assistive AI", said Weta has used machine learning for at least a decade, and said Weta is building an open-source tool with the Academy Software Foundation to track AI use and provenance, designed to link with initiatives such as C2PA. 2 Mixed · 2On sustainability, asked about AI's water use, the Netflix executive said the issue should be seen in the broader context of reaching net zero; Variety reported he said Netflix looks at it company-wide and doesn't study AI separately, while Thurston said Weta's Wellington data centre uses closed-loop cooling and draws "zero liters of water per year". 1 2