International
Cars 2 grosses $ 68 million in 1st weekend
MUMBAI: Outpacing expectations, Walt Disney/Pixar’s Cars 2 grossed $ 68 million in its first weekend beating the $60.1 million debut of the original Cars. Overseas, the Pixar sequel grossed $42.9 million from 18 markets for a worldwide debut of $110.9 million. Heading into the weekend, tracking had suggested an opening of $50 million to $55 million for Cars 2.
On the other hand, the Cameron Diaz comedy Bad Teacher grossing $ 31 million overpowered Universal’s Bridesmaids that grossed $26.1 million. Made at a cost of $20 million, the film earned another $12.9 million internationally for a global opening of $49.3 million.
In North America, Bad Teacher edged out Green Lantern for the No. 2 spot. The latter fell a steep 66 per cent in its second weekend by grossing $18.4 million. Disney said that a contributing factor to the film’s success was the popularity of Pixar titles.
On the other hand, rival studios pointed out that Cars 2 dropped 10 per cent from Friday to Saturday, suggesting that bad reviews, unusual for a Pixar title, may have had an impact. However, Disney said that the drop had to do with the fact that most kids are out of school now with Friday playing more like a Saturday. Opening on the same weekend last year, Toy Story 3 also dropped 10 per cent on Saturday.
At the international box office, Cars 2 grossed $9.3 million in Russia and in Australia, the film beat Kung Fu Panda 2 by grossing $5.2 million.
International
Utopai Studios unveils 4K three-minute video generation for PAI platform
New Story Agent and editing tools aim to streamline AI-led filmmaking workflows
MUMBAI: Utopai Studios has announced a major upgrade to its PAI storytelling AI platform, introducing what it claims is an industry-first capability to generate three-minute videos in 4K resolution, alongside enhancements to its Story Agent feature.
The update, rolling out from April 15, expands the platform’s capabilities across the filmmaking process, from early concept development to post-production. The company said the new features are designed to help filmmakers maintain continuity across characters, scenes and visual styles, a key challenge in AI-driven storytelling.
At the heart of the release is a next-generation model that enables more structured narrative development, allowing creators to move more seamlessly from idea to execution. With tools such as multi-shot sequencing and multi-turn editing, the platform aims to give both studios and independent creators greater control over complex storytelling workflows.
Commenting on the launch, Utopai Studios co-founder and CTO Jie Yang said, “The next phase of AI in media will not be defined by isolated tools, but by systems that can carry story, continuity and collaboration across the full creative process.” He added that the update is a step towards enabling more practical, end-to-end narrative development at a professional level.
Echoing this, Utopai Studios co-founder and chief scientific officer Zijian He said, “Generative video is opening the door to a new production model, where creative ambition is less constrained by traditional cost and complexity.” He noted that the platform combines multimodal models with iterative editing to give creators more speed, control and consistency.
The company said PAI is already being used in professional film and television productions, particularly in Hollywood, for tasks such as pre-visualisation, scene design and post-production refinements. The latest update adds features including improved voice options, character consistency, unlimited editing and more flexible asset management.
Utopai also emphasised that its models are not trained on copyrighted material, positioning the platform as a cleaner alternative for creators and rights holders navigating the evolving AI landscape.
As AI continues to reshape content creation, Utopai’s latest push signals a shift from standalone tools to integrated systems, aiming to make high-quality filmmaking faster, more flexible and increasingly accessible.
