Facebook’s parent company, Meta, announced on Thursday a collaboration with Blumhouse Productions, known for hit horror films like “The Purge” and “Get Out,” to test its new generative AI video model, Movie Gen. The partnership comes shortly after Meta introduced Movie Gen earlier this month, positioning the tool as a rival to media generation startups such as OpenAI and ElevenLabs.
Movie Gen is designed to create realistic video and audio clips based on user prompts. To test its capabilities, Blumhouse has brought in filmmakers Aneesh Chaganty, The Spurlock Sisters, and Casey Affleck. Chaganty’s film will debut on Meta’s Movie Gen platform, while films from Affleck and The Spurlock Sisters are expected to follow.
Blumhouse CEO Jason Blum expressed enthusiasm for the opportunity to experiment with new technology, noting that while artists drive the creative industry, innovative tools like Movie Gen could assist in storytelling. He emphasized the importance of involving filmmakers in the tool’s development to ensure it meets their needs.
Meta’s collaboration with the entertainment industry highlights its effort to integrate AI technologies into creative workflows. This move comes amid growing concerns from artists about copyright and consent, as some have pushed back against the use of generative AI. Several groups have filed lawsuits against major tech companies, including Meta, accusing them of using copyrighted works without authorization to train AI systems. Meta has defended its AI training practices under the fair use doctrine.
Despite legal challenges, Meta and other companies have been proactive in forming partnerships with artists. Meta recently secured deals with actors such as Judi Dench, Kristen Bell, and John Cena to lend their voices to its Meta AI chatbot. Meanwhile, OpenAI, backed by Microsoft, has also been engaging Hollywood leaders in discussions about collaborations for its video generation tool, Sora.
