Hollywood scouts film schools for AI-native talent
“How do we find people who already know how to use this?” is a common question studios are asking now, said Runway CEO Cristóbal Valenzuela.
Film schools are now producing a steady stream of AI filmmakers who are well-versed in utilizing the latest tools to create movies, making them easier to hire than to train internal teams on, according to film executives. Cristóbal Valenzuela, CEO of AI-powered software company Runway, noted that the question of how to find individuals who already possess these skills is a frequent inquiry for studios.
Runway launched its first AI filmmaking course in 2024 at NYU's Martin Scorsese Virtual Production Center. Since then, courses to train on its tools have been made available at USC, Rhode Island School of Design, MIT, Harvard, and various universities in Europe and Latin America.
Other AI research labs, including Google and OpenAI, are also providing education to filmmakers and other creatives on how to integrate AI into their processes. Google, for instance, offers a residency program for creatives to experiment with its AI studio, Flow, aiming to bridge the gap between filmmakers and Google engineers.
While AI fluency is not a mandatory requirement for movie making at the moment, some creatives who have participated in Google's Flow sessions residency believe that it may soon become a prerequisite in the industry. Brad Tangonan, a seasoned filmmaker and former resident of Google's Flow program, commented that filmmakers who aspire to be part of the industry will need to learn how to use these tools.
Written by urgent.news from Semafor's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
