A film depicting the Iranian protest movement is making its mark in film history. “Violets” is the first fully AI-generated feature film to be selected for a major international film festival. The 75-minute drama will premiere next week at New York’s Tribeca Festival. The film, made by Iranian-British director Ash Kusha at his home in London, took just three months to make and cost less than €2,000 to make. There were no actors, cameras, sets, or film crews. Kusha says the film could not have been made through traditional means. Living in exile and unable to film safely inside Iran, he turned to AI to recreate events related to the country’s deadly crackdown on anti-government protesters. The film is based on journalistic reports, photographs, and eyewitness accounts, and explores themes of memory, censorship, and resistance. But the film has also reignited heated debate as Tribeca becomes the first major festival to embrace features entirely generated by AI. Can artificial intelligence tell deep human stories? Will AI democratize filmmaking or threaten the future of the industry? Eve Jackson talks to Ash Kusha about Iran, ethics, and the future of film.
Source: News and stories on CULTURE, movies, music, literature – France 24 – www.france24.com
