It’s already powering remarkable visual innovations, like in the new movie “Here.” But boosters think that’s just the beginning.
 Devin Gordo

What if A.I. Is Actually Good for Hollywood?

submited by
Style Pass
2024-11-01 11:00:01

It’s already powering remarkable visual innovations, like in the new movie “Here.” But boosters think that’s just the beginning.

Devin Gordon is a Massachusetts-based writer. His previous work for the magazine has included stories about professional cornhole, baseball umpires and Ironman races that cater to executives.

The Los Angeles headquarters of Metaphysic, a Hollywood visual-effects start-up that uses artificial intelligence to create digital renderings of the human face, were much cooler in my imagination, if I’m being honest. I came here to get my mind blown by A.I., and this dim three-room warren overlooking Sunset Boulevard felt more like the slouchy offices of a middling law firm. Ed Ulbrich, Metaphysic’s chief content officer, steered me into a room that looked set to host a deposition, then sat me down in a leather desk chair with a camera pointed at it. I stared at myself on a large flat-screen TV, waiting to be sworn in.

But then Ulbrich clickety-clicked on his laptop for a moment, and my face on the screen was transmogrified. “Smile,” he said to me. “Do you recognize that face?” I did, right away, but I can’t disclose its owner, because the actor’s project won’t come out until 2025, and the role is still top secret. Suffice it to say that the face belonged to a major star with fantastic teeth. “Smile again,” Ulbrich said. I complied. “Those aren’t your teeth.” Indeed, the teeth belonged to Famous Actor. The synthesis was seamless and immediate, as if a digital mask had been pulled over my face that matched my expressions, with almost no lag time.

Leave a Comment