[Global Times special correspondent Dong Ming] Recently, a news that "artificial intelligence (AI) actors are about to debut" stirred up the whole Hollywood. This actress, who does not exist in reality, has become the focus of controversy between the media and practitioners, especially the actors who are facing a formidable enemy-this reflects not only the anxiety about whether real actors will be replaced by virtual actors, but also the traditional entertainment industry in the streaming media era. How does the industry face the game of rapid development of science and technology?

¡°This seemingly innocent image of a woman has provoked anger.¡±

At the International Film Festival in Zurich recently, the founder and CEO of Particle 6, Irene Vanderwald, announced that an AI actor named Tilly Norwood is about to appear and sign a brokerage company. However, "this seemingly innocent female image has aroused anger, anxiety, obsession and desire."Tilly Norwood commented that after the big strike in Hollywood in 2023, Tilly Norwood once again sparked Hollywood's concerns about artificial intelligence.

Founded in 2015, Particle6 has transformed into a company that produces AI content in recent years. Founder Van der Verdun was originally an actor and Internet celebrity blogger who was good at making spoof videos. Now he is transforming into behind-the-scenes production and targeting AI actors. The market. In July this year, Particle6 launched a funny short film starring "AI actor Norwood, and applied for a social media account to create an affinity for a" personality ". In order to create an anthropomorphic character for Norwood, the company not only used mainstream AI tools such as Sora and ChatGPT, but also developed an AI personality engine that allowed her to respond independently. At the commercial level, there are also endorsements, game implants, fan interactions, etc. A series of planning-Van der Verdun's goal is to "make Norwood the next Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman!"

In fact, compared with other AI-generated virtual characters, the face of sweet Norwood is not much new in technology, so this "shake Hollywood" is because her "contracting brokerage company" business operation is seen by Hollywood as a kind of betrayal - the brokerage company should have stood on the side of real-person actors, how can help AI steal their dishes?In addition, Norwood blends the appearance and performance of many star features, also make the actors feel offended, American actors will protest for the first time: "Norwood is not an actor, but a role produced by computer software, based on the work of countless professional actors trained by the Hollywood actress Emily Brown shouted, "It's really terrible!

According to the British "Guardian" reported on the 13th, a Scottish actress claimed that her image was used to create Norwood, and the British Screen Actors Guild would provide her with relevant support, threatening to take action to protest the unauthorized use of its members' portraits, images and voices by technology companies and entertainment companies in AI content. The association also said there were increasing complaints from members about misuse of personal data.

A hype gimmick or a real threat?

According to Trisia Bicho, CEO of AI animation studio Invisible Universe,"The reason why people react so strongly is that they heard that some agents would actually use AI actors as clients, which triggered public outrage." Brian Musser, founder of Asteria, a Los Angeles AI film studio, agreed that "people are so excited, which just shows that the entire industry is in a very tense moment."

In view of these AI entrepreneurs, "Norwood to sign" is more like a hypocrisy, the current AI role has not really threatened the job opportunities of real-person actors. According to the agreement signed after the last round of Hollywood actors strike, if one party wants to use virtual synthesis role, must notify the American Actors Association, and at present Hollywood mainstream studios use AI technology mainly in the field of enhancement of visual effects, optimization of pre-production, and do not rush to use AI actors.

In Hollywood, there have been numerous cases of "fictional" actors using special effects technology over the years, such as in the 2019 movie Star Wars 9: Rise of the Skywalker, the late star Kelly Fisher is "resurrected" on the screen.

According to a recent report by CNBC in the United States, the latest version of the OpenAI Sora 2 application can generate Short Video for free by simply inputting prompt words. "We tried 'Create a superhero in a black cloak who is saving a woman from a burning building' and sometimes the generated videos worked so well that it was no wonder it sparked a new round of anxiety among actors, musicians and other creative industry practitioners."

According to the American "Dialogue" website, it is not surprising that AI actresses like Norwood have been created. This kind of program-generated "actress" only looks like a human on the surface, but lacks the "humanity" that actors need most. But the paradox is that "for producers, directors and film companies, a submissive and commercialized'character 'like Nolwood provides an attractive prospect: an'actor' who doesn't need to restrict his private life will not post information on social media privately, causing disturbing public opinion risks."

The "playing mouse game" between the factory and the AI platform

Hollywood loves and is afraid of AI technology. For example, Disney has been using learning artificial intelligence to conduct data analysis, optimize processes, predict the peak flow of people in Disneyland, and help streaming media platforms push customized content to users. But Sora's generative artificial intelligence has easily surpassed Hollywood's control due to its low threshold of use and high ease of use. "That's why there are a large number of AI videos featuring Robert Downey Jr. on the Internet. Even if Downey himself opposes The studio's use of his portrait as AI material cannot stop those netizens."

Forbes analyzes that big factories like Disney have also tried to generate artificial intelligence ¨C used in the animated opening of the Marvel series ¡°Secret Invasion¡± in 2023, but that it is more cautious after encountering strong criticism, in the legal level to restrict the role of the company is used by artificial intelligence, and even to the AI start-up to create a letter to the lawyer, ¡°but it is too late, the ¡®AI elephant¡¯ has gone out. The essence of the Internet is that the imitators are always faster than the ¡®law enforcer¡¯, even if one AI platform is in line with the requirements of the factory, another platform will jump out. This is an endless ¡®play mouse game¡¯, especially after the rise of media platforms, this phenomenon will be more and more.¡±