Major Kobayashi

Truth is, the AI film scene is industry now. and like every industry before it, the first thing it ate was its own promise. The promise was beautiful and meant something. no gatekeepers. no permission. no rich uncle, no film school, no crew of a 100, no producer deciding your story wasn’t “marketable.” just you, an idea and a machine that didn’t care who your father was. for a moment the gates were open, and everyone walked through They didn’t like that. It started with the industry moving in. Deals with CapCut. Partnerships. Then, almost overnight, Hollywood directors who had spent years calling it the death of cinema were slowly, reluctantly writing cheques for it. That could have been a good thing. Money, legitimacy, a bridge between two worlds. But they didn’t come alone. They brought the old ways with them. Suddenly there were festivals. Then fees to enter the festivals. Then their selected people on the list of juries, “Official selections.” Laurels on posters. Which on people should be good. But with it the gatekeeping. And trust me its there behind the scenes they have their blacklists. See early access is the new nepotism. Follower count is the new budget. That's why those in those circles started buying their followers to up their follow count btw. Being in the right group chat is the new being born in the right city. The same names win the same prizes and thank the same tools, and when you think a new name wins you find that its someone tied to industry. The industry has been here for a bit now. It doesn't mean industry = bad. But the nepotism and gatekeeping came with it. And you'll start noticing it yourself as time goes on why its just more of the same exclusionary old ways that ruined Hollywood. So if you feel like its rigged. That's because it is. They'll tell you blue in the face it isnt. Well then just look at who is sponsoring them. Still time to build your own table. Own your work, your audience, your name. Publish where nobody needs your gratitude. Make the strange film, the ugly film, the one that wins no laurels and fits no challenge. Make the thing they’ll copy next year and pretend they thought of first.

Our bet is that better AI will make films more personal. So I made a film where hurting someone turns you into candy. Would that make us civilised? Created with @seedance 2.5. Happy to collaborate with @BytePlusGlobal on this project. #seedance25