Despite active discussions about the future of artificial intelligence in cinema, the first attempt to release a fully AI-generated film on the big screen suffered a devastating financial fiasco.
Despite active discussions about the future of artificial intelligence in cinema, the first attempt to release a fully AI-generated film on the big screen suffered a devastating financial fiasco.
The Chinese film "Sanxingdui: Future Past," which was released nationally on October 23, grossed a meager $181,000 in its first days of release, Cartoon Brew reports, Futurism reports .
The failure was particularly painful given the scale of the release: Bona Film Group secured a full distribution on over 10,000 screens on its opening day. With an average gross of less than $20 per screen, the company is unlikely to be able to recoup its stated budget of $1.5 million.
According to the creators, almost 100 people worked on the project for over two years, however, both the visuals and the voice acting of the "actors" were completely generated by artificial intelligence.
Bona Film Group CEO Jiang Defu acknowledged the problems with attracting viewers even at the stage of low preliminary ticket sales:
"We are the first to take the risk, the first to get a distribution license, and the first to be tested by the audience. I think it's not easy at all," he said in a comment to the Chinese publication Yuli.
The failure of the artificially licked "Sansinduyu" became especially contrasting against the unexpected success of another Chinese animated film - "Niu Lai".
The film, created by a mother and son with a budget of just $200, features artisanal animation and amateur voice acting, which is the complete opposite of the flawless and cold picture that the AI produces.
However, it was the flaws and sincerity of the creators that won over the audience: the film became a viral meme and a micro-phenomenon of the film distribution, collecting almost $10 million.
Relative to its original budget, "New Lies" became one of the highest-grossing films in the history of cinema.
