netflix
Over the past year, generative AI has sparked a wave of existential fear of potential machine job losses not seen since the advent of the industrial revolution. On Tuesday, Netflix reinvigorated that scare when it debuted its next short film. dog and boy Useful for generating background artwork using AI image synthesis.
Directed by Ryotaro Makihara, the 3-minute animated short follows the hilarious times of a boy and his robot dog, but the story quickly takes a dramatic post-apocalyptic turn. In the middle, it includes a lush background that appears to have been created as a collaboration between humans and machines, and in the end he credits his sequence with “AI (+ Human)”.
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stills from short films dog and boy Features AI-assisted background art.
netflix
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stills from short films dog and boy Features AI-assisted background art.
netflix
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stills from short films dog and boy Features AI-assisted background art.
netflix
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stills from short films dog and boy Features AI-assisted background art.
netflix
in the Announcement tweetNetflix cited a labor shortage in the industry as a reason for using image synthesis technology.
As an attempt to support the anime industry, which is suffering from a labor shortage, we created a background image for all cuts of a 3-minute video using video generation technology!
Netflix and production companies wit studio turned to Japanese AI company Rinna to help generate the images. The exact type of technology Rinna used to generate the artwork was never announced, but the process was “utilizing Stable Diffusion,” in that images could be taken and transformed based on written prompts. img2img” process.
The movie is now available to watch for free on YouTube.
netflix official dog and boy promotion video.
Almost immediately, Twitter users responded with a barrage of negative replies to Netflix’s tweet announcing the film. like that“I know a lot of animators looking for work.“some other quoted Legendary Studio Ghibli animator Hayao Miyazaki has said that AI-powered art is “an affront to life itself.”
“Image generation technology”? Let’s say you steal an artist’s job through the AI generation and claim a shortage of workers. People with degrees like me and my brothers can’t get jobs.Because 500 other alumni are also going to be interviewed for each application.
— Reece Alex Burton //39k in 80k draft// (@ReeceAlexBurton) February 1, 2023
In a news release, Netflix expressed hope that new technology will help animation production in the future (translated by Google Translate). The animation industry faces a shortage of human resources, and we hope that this initiative will contribute to the realization of a flexible animation production process through appropriate support for creators who make full use of the latest technology. “
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Step 1 of the AI-assisted background art process, captured from the credits sequence of dog and boy.
netflix
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Step 2 of the AI-assisted background art process, captured from the credits sequence of dog and boy.
netflix
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Step 3 of the AI-assisted background art process, captured from the credits sequence of dog and boy.
netflix
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The fourth and final step in the AI-assisted background art process, captured from the credits sequence of dog and boy.
netflix
Makihara also wanted to push the boundaries of animation by using AI technology as part of the production process. The Netflix release says, “By combining tools and hand-drawn techniques, you can create something unique to humans… I think the crux of the story is ‘painting humans’. Secure and return to its roots.” By doing so, I think we can ultimately strengthen the strengths of Japanese animation and expand its possibilities. “
Labor shortage or not, AI assistance could speed up production time and reduce production costs, potentially enabling more animated content to be created than ever before. But will people be satisfied with that? I don’t know yet.
