A24 knows you’re mad at Google AI Collab

Back roomsthe last A horror film that achieved great successa film full of ideas about repetition and decadence. Its main theme – the horror of the world that seems to mindlessly, brutally, tear our world apart – was him It is considered in some circles As a criticism of Generative artificial intelligence. The idea clearly struck a nerve. newly transient $300 million at the global box office Back rooms It was the biggest success yet for its buzzy producer and distributor, New York’s A24.

Against the backdrop of this box office coup, it’s a bit funny that A24 recently announced a $75 million research partnership with Deep MindGoogle’s internal AI lab. like The Wall Street Journal reported On Monday, the tech giant teamed up with A24 to create new “tools” for filmmaking, as part of A24’s tech startup, A24 Labs, overseen by co-founder Scott Belsky.

“This is a research partnership,” Sophia Chen, who handles communications at A24, tells WIRED in an email. “We work alongside DeepMind researchers to learn, iterate and build, and have an active hand in shaping new tools and workflows.”

It’s the latest in a series of tumultuous and controversial marriages between Silicon Valley and Hollywood. Late last year, Disney announced it was taking it on $1 billion share at OpenAI, including licensing characters like Mickey Mouse, Goofy, and C-3PO to the company’s video creation model, Sora. A few months later, Sora It was the same kaputas was the deal. The threat of AI to cinema, and the creative arts in general, can seem quite existential: Automate (and kill) entry-level jobsto threaten Writers’ roomsand Squat in multiples To showcase AI-generated works that range from boring to obnoxious. Some studios They filed a lawsuit against artificial intelligence companies For copyright infringement.

There are also growing concerns that AI’s takeover of the film industry is having a chilling effect, as in the recent case where studios distanced themselves from OpenAI founder Sam Altman’s biopic Luca Guadagnino. industrial.

The announcement of the A24 AI partnership was particularly puzzling and controversial, precisely because of A24’s place in contemporary film culture.

It looks like the A24 group of fanatics aren’t taking the news of their latest collaboration well. Earlier this week, A24 released the trailer for Jesse Eisenberg’s new musical drama For the first time. On X, the comments below the trailer were filled with criticism directed at A24, from fan posts Tombstones And advertising Death of the companyFor promises Illegal movie piracy (to eat A24 profits), to snarky Statements like: “It’s ironic that The Debut is the film released in the middle of (sic) a24 and ends with ai.” (Your definition of “sarcasm” may vary.)

“Our relationship with our audience is something we don’t take for granted,” affirms A24’s Shane. “This partnership exists because we want to dictate what tools will be designed for artists, so they have a voice in shaping it rather than having the tools handed to them. We would rather have a seat at the table than on the sidelines.”

Google DeepMind did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Great worker

A24 is a huge tastemaker in the movie business. “In the same way that Disney sells nostalgia, A24 has sold the feeling of being hip and cutting-edge throughout its existence,” says film critic Esther Rosenfeld.

before Back roomsA24 topped American independent films such as Witch, moonlight, midsummer, Everything everywhere at once, And the last Marty Supreme. The studio launched and supported the works and careers of serious filmmakers such as Sofia Coppola, Denis Villeneuve, Ari Aster, Jean Schönbrunn, Celine Song, and the Safdie brothers. It has received dozens of Academy Award nominations since its founding in 2012. A24’s distinctive logo before a film’s trailer, in a cinema culture dominated by blockbuster IPs with boring franchises, is often enough to generate hype for a new release.