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De-aged stars, cloned voices: How AI is changing acting
Los Angeles Times ^ | July 24, 2025 3 AM PT | Josh Rottenberg

Posted on 07/24/2025 10:56:15 AM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum

For filmmaker Scott Mann, three dozen F-bombs had the makings of a million-dollar headache.

When Mann wrapped “Fall,” a 2022 thriller about two women stranded atop a 2,000-foot radio tower, he figured the hard part was over. Shot in the Mojave Desert on a $3-million budget, the film didn’t have money to burn and seemed on course. But Lionsgate wanted a PG-13 rating and, with 35 expletives, “Fall” was headed for an R. Reshoots would cost more than $1 million — far beyond what the production could afford.

In the past, a director might have taken out a second mortgage or thrown themselves at the mercy of the ratings board. Mann instead turned to AI.

A few years earlier, he had been dismayed by how a German dub of his 2015 thriller “Heist” flattened the performances, including a key scene with Robert De Niro, to match stiff, mistranslated dialogue. That frustration led Mann to co-found Flawless, an AI startup aimed at preserving the integrity of an actor’s performance across languages. As a proof of concept, he used the company’s tech to subtly reshape De Niro’s mouth movements and restore the emotional nuance of the original scene.

On “Fall,” Mann applied that same technology to clean up the profanity without reshoots, digitally modifying the actors’ mouths to match PG-13-friendly lines like “freaking” — at a fraction of the cost.

As AI stirs both hype and anxiety in Hollywood, Mann understands why even such subtle digital tweaks can feel like a violation. That tension came to a head during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, in which AI became the defining flash point in the fight over acting’s future.

“Ours is a rights-based industry,” says Mann, 45, who helped develop a digital rights management platform at Flawless to ensure performers...

(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...


TOPICS: TV/Movies
KEYWORDS: ai; entertainment; movies; sagaftra
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To: Whatever Works
“Prepare yourself for John Wayne and Cary Grant in La Cage aux Folles.”


21 posted on 07/24/2025 12:06:26 PM PDT by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: Whatever Works
Great! I’d love some new John Wayne and Cary Grant movies ... As long as they are like the originals in theme.

PLEASE don't tempt them! They'd do a "Brokeback Mountain 2"

22 posted on 07/24/2025 12:39:54 PM PDT by montag813
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To: Dalberg-Acton
In a similar vein, LOOKER, a 1981 film where beautiful models are digitized and then eliminated so they never grow old.

Michael Crichton was always chock full of ahead-of-its-time ideas. Too bad 'Looker' was kind of a bore.

23 posted on 07/24/2025 12:41:35 PM PDT by montag813
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To: itsahoot
In that movie Looker did you remember a throw away scene that featured an AI generated politician doing a speech? Remember the scene where they were digitizing Suzan Dey?

Ah....Susan Dey. So lovely.

24 posted on 07/24/2025 12:42:08 PM PDT by montag813
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

Might as well just watch someone play a video game.


25 posted on 07/24/2025 12:56:10 PM PDT by Overtaxed
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

All of the pining for John Wayne in this thread makes me wonder what movies you watched? John Wayne was a stiff. None of his roles made me think that he was a good actor. He was one dimensional, stiff, and monotone.


26 posted on 07/24/2025 1:00:13 PM PDT by Vermont Lt
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

The sheriff is near...


27 posted on 07/24/2025 1:09:35 PM PDT by Organic Panic ('Was I molested. I think so' - Ashley Biden in response to her father joining her in the shower. )
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To: Ruy Dias de Bivar

I won’t watch cartoons any more. I grew up.


28 posted on 07/24/2025 2:43:11 PM PDT by GingisK
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

Film used to be a very expensive medium. Digital video, including recording, editing, and effects, has drastically lowered the cost of filmmaking. AI will make it even more affordable and accessible. But this may mean we just get that much more content that’s not worth watching.

Where AI could do the most good is if it could help us sort through the bazillion hours of useless content to find the hidden gems worth watching.


29 posted on 07/24/2025 2:48:29 PM PDT by unlearner (Still not tired of winning.)
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

AI videos are getting better. I have been watching some short videos that are more entertaining then the big hollywood productions.

Look at these Star Wars and Bigfoot shorts that have better CGI then Superman and a better script. Once you seen one you want to see more.

Stormtrooper Vlog pt. 1-7 | Poor Greg | Star Wars Vlog
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2P_Ek9xzio

Bigfoot Vlog: I Was ABDUCTED to AREA 51… What I Saw Will Haunt Me Forever 👽⚠️
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMwGguf8GnE


30 posted on 07/24/2025 3:03:45 PM PDT by minnesota_bound (Making money now. Still want much more.)
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

I am shock to find out that De Niro was swearing in a movie....


31 posted on 07/24/2025 3:08:54 PM PDT by minnesota_bound (Making money now. Still want much more.)
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To: minnesota_bound

The entertainment industry is destroying itself and it is because they have lousy music and tv shows and movies. AI won’t improve this.

They need to get rid of the woke racist dei protools autotune garbage. They even have quota’s for award shows...! Don’t meet their checklist then no award for you! They need to write better stories. There are a million of them but they instead recycle then add in woke racist dei garbage.

The marvel movies, star trek, star wars franchises that have now been wrecked.

Taylor Swift cannot sing or dance or play musical instruments well. She just happens to be in an age of mediocrity. She makes big money but her voice and music is awful.

AI is just another tool. Justine Bateman wrote that she does not like AI and has used an iPhone to make a few movies.

Well back in my day we used film that was on silver nitrate!

It all comes down to the writing and directing and acting and creating a scene. If it is a bad story it won’t matter how good of an actor you are or that the studio used AI at all.


32 posted on 07/24/2025 4:20:10 PM PDT by minnesota_bound (Making money now. Still want much more.)
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