All posts tagged: Disney

Disney Just Threw a Punch in a Major AI Fight

Published by skeptic

[ad_1] Michael Calore: So publishing is definitely at the top of the list of industries that have been worried about AI plagiarizing original work, and we should all know because we’re all in the publishing industry. But then there’s the content that is the opposite of thoughtful, human-made work, and that is AI slop. The term explains itself when you say it out loud, but let’s quickly talk about what AI slop is and why it seems to be everywhere. Lauren Goode: I can take this one, but also, I do want to toss it back to Kate, because Kate, you are the queen of AI slop, and I don’t mean that you generate it. I don’t mean that it’s part of your personal content creation vector or whatever we’re calling it, but you’ve written a lot about it. AI slop is just low-quality, shoddy AI content that is appearing online. It is proliferating our feeds. It’s often on social media, but it’s not just on social media. It is now being passed off as …

Let’s Get Small: How Pixar Went Microscopic to Create the Aliens in ‘Elio’

Published by Sam

[ad_1] The real-life creature’s graceful, ribbon-like movements give Questa a hypnotic way of drifting through the air. “It really works for her because she’s always analyzing people, and she’s very empathetic,” Jessup says. “And she can read characters’ minds with the little fronds on the top of her head.” Other creatures drawn from the minuscule include the Gomesia, a collective of short creatures with concave heads that resemble a cluster of miniature mushrooms with upside-down caps. They also call to mind another frequently overlooked tiny item: earbuds. (“I hadn’t thought of the earbud idea, but I think you’re right,” Jessup says.) Lastly, Elio’s best friend and sidekick, Glordon (voiced by child actor Remy Edgerly), is based on one of the most famous microscopic creatures ever uncovered—the tardigrade, a.k.a. “water bear.” In addition to being too small to see with the naked eye, these eight-legged chunk-a-munks are renowned for being nearly indestructible. Glordon is fireproof like a tardigrade, but is a softy by comparison. He’s part of a species that has become warlike and mechanized, with …

‘Wall-E With a Gun’: Midjourney Generates Videos of Disney Characters Amid Massive Copyright Lawsuit

Published by skeptic

[ad_1] Midjourney’s new AI-generated video tool will produce animated clips featuring copyrighted characters from Disney and Universal, WIRED has found—including video of the beloved Pixar character Wall-E holding a gun. It’s been a busy month for Midjourney. This week, the generative AI startup released its sophisticated new video tool, V1, which lets users make short animated clips from images they generate or upload. The current version of Midjourney’s AI video tool requires an image as a starting point; generating videos using text-only prompts is not supported. The release of V1 comes on the heels of a very different kind of announcement earlier in June: Hollywood behemoths Disney and Universal filed a blockbuster lawsuit against Midjourney, alleging that it violates copyright law by generating images with the studios’ intellectual property. Midjourney did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Disney and Universal reiterated statements made by its executives about the lawsuit, including Disney’s legal head Horacio Gutierrez alleging that Midjourney’s output amounts to “piracy.” It appears that Midjourney may have attempted to put up some video-specific …

First Looks at Disneyland Expansion and Disney World’s ‘Piston Peak’ Cars Land

Published by skeptic

[ad_1] It’s been 70 years since Disneyland opened its gates, and the original Disney park is now celebrating its anniversary. As Walt Disney himself predicted, Disneyland will “never be completed,” as long as imagination remains in the world — and it’s continuing to grow with new rides, experiences and entertainment planned for 2025 and beyond.  This week, Disney announced new details for its big expansion, including a new esplanade entry experience, where the Coco ride will be, and what old attraction will be closing down so the Avatar attraction can open. And over in the 53-year-old Walt Disney World in Florida, new lands are being built right now (not to mention the brand-new Disney theme park announced for Abu Dhabi). Disney Parks has revealed how its new Cars Land at Magic Kingdom will look — check out the map below. We’ve got all the details on the park expansions and the Disneyland 70th anniversary celebration. Here’s everything coming to the Disney Parks and the Disney Cruise Line in 2025 and beyond. Disneyland expansion Concept art of the new pedestrian bridge …

Disney and Universal lawsuit may be killing blow in AI copyright wars

Published by skeptic

[ad_1] Minions are characters in films produced by Universal Pictures Cinematic/Alamy Disney and Universal have filed a lawsuit against AI image generator Midjourney alleging mass copyright infringement that enables users to create images that “blatantly incorporate and copy Disney’s and Universal’s famous characters”. The action could be a major turning point in the legal battles over AI copyright infringement being negotiated by book publishers, news agencies and other content creators. Midjourney’s tool, which creates images from text prompts, has 20 million users on its Discord server, where users type their inputs. In the lawsuit, the two movie-making giants share examples in which Midjourney is able to create images that uncannily resemble characters each company owns the rights to, such as the Minions, controlled by Universal, or the Lion King, owned by Disney. The companies allege those outputs could only be the result of Midjourney training its AI on their copyrighted material. They also say Midjourney “ignored” their attempts to remediate the issue prior to taking legal action. In the complaint, the companies say “Midjourney is …

Hwang Joyoon Sets Streaming Debut With Disney+’s ‘Gold Land’

Published by skeptic

[ad_1] Disney+ has unveiled its latest Korean original: Gold Land, a gritty crime thriller created by Oldboy screenwriter Hwang Joyoon and directed by Chief Detective 1958 helmer Kim Sunghoon. Set in rural Korea and suffused with tension, Gold Land follows Kim Heeju (played by Light Shop star Park Boyoung), a young woman who stumbles into possession of gold bars belonging to a smuggling syndicate. On the run from a violent criminal network and forced to return to a hometown she had hoped to forget, Heeju’s story quickly turns into a harrowing chase for survival. Kim Sung Cheol (No Way Out: The Roulette, Troll Factory) co-stars as Jang Wook (aka “Woogy”), a menacing yet familiar figure from Heeju’s past who now hunts her on behalf of the syndicate.  Disney says the series promises a potent mix of suspense, action, and emotional depth — hallmarks of Hwang’s previous work in films such as Rampant and Memoir of a Murderer. A release date for Gold Land is still to come. The series is the latest addition to Disney+’s …

SuperPlay launches Disney Solitaire, its latest mobile title

Published by skeptic

[ad_1] Mobile game developer SuperPlay today officially launched its newest mobile title: Disney Solitaire, a licensed, free-to-play card game featuring a large roster of familiar Disney characters. It’s currently available to download on both iOS and Android, where it’s currently reached around 1 million pre-registrations before its official launch. Disney Solitaire is SuperPlay’s first game to launch since its acquisition by Playtika last year. Disney Solitaire features TriPeaks Solitaire gameplay with a few twists, with over 75 Disney characters putting in appearances. According to SuperPlay, players can collect stars which they can then use to recreate scenes from classic Disney films. These include The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, Toy Story, Frozen, Coco and Moana, among others. SuperPlay CEO Gilad Almog told GamesBeat in an interview that the game was a dream come true for the studio’s artists: “We have kind of an issue when we started, because a lot of the artists in the other games started to to apply for roles in the in the Disney studio, because that was one of …

Snow White: Blighted by controversy, but Disney live-action remake still tops box office | Ents & Arts News

Published by skeptic

[ad_1] Disney’s live-action remake of Snow White And The Seven Dwarves has topped the North American box office chart, despite a controversy-packed run-up to the film’s release. Based on the 1937 classic that established Disney’s name as an industry leader, Snow White took an estimated $43m (£33.1m) domestically, and $87.3m (£67.3m) worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo. Image: Pic: Disney In the UK and Ireland, the film took £3.85m, accounting for 43% of all tickets sold across its three-day opening weekend. For comparison, Disney’s Mufasa: The Lion King, which came to cinemas in December, took $35m domestically (£27m). It’s now gone on to take over $700m (£540m) globally. Meanwhile, Disney’s 2019 live-action Dumbo, directed by Tim Burton, took $45m (£35m) domestically in its opening weekend. It has since taken over $350m (£270m) worldwide. Snow White has not performed well in China, only making it to seventh place in the Chinese box office charts and grossing less than $1m (£770,000) over its opening, according to EntGroup’s China Box Office website. Reviews for the movie have been …

Rachel Zegler & Gal Gadot in Lively Disney Remake

Published by skeptic

[ad_1] Of all the Disney animated classics to have been given the live-action treatment, few are more beloved than 1937’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, a landmark feature that opened the door to a whole vault of canonical fairy tales ideally suited to the form. That, in turn, led to original stories, building the studio a vast, field-leading toon library and a legacy beloved the world over. If Snow White arrives accompanied by an echo chamber of overblown online controversies, that has zero bearing on the pleasures of this 21st century update. Even those with knives out for the movie might have to admit it’s no poisoned apple. Having turned this particular form of brand extension and IP strip-mining into a subgenre unto itself, Disney’s live-action remake boom — which has ballooned into a full-scale explosion in the past decade — has been a mixed bag. Some are such products of the digital toolbox that “live-action” feels like false advertising; some flatten the quaint charms of tales hailing from less cynical times; some struggle to …

How I Squeeze More Value Out of My Disney+ Subscription

Published by skeptic

[ad_1] Like everything else these days, streaming services are getting more expensive. And that includes Disney+. However, I don’t want to cancel Disney+ permanently, so I’ve decided to squeeze more value out of it instead. The media business is shifting away from movie theaters and network television to streaming services. And that means many new movies and TV shows you can and should be watching are available on streaming services. Either exclusively or very soon after release elsewhere. To squeeze the most value out of streaming services, you must make the most of these opportunities to watch content quickly. So, I will keep an eye on Disney+ release schedules and be sure to watch new and exclusive content as soon as it appears. This isn’t good news for cinemas, but it is great news for my bank balance. 2 Cancel and Resubscribe Often Another option I have occasionally taken advantage of is the ability to cancel and resubscribe to Disney+ at will. One of the big differences between cable companies and streaming services is the …