International
Dino De Laurentiis bids adieu to the world
MUMBAI: 91-year old legendary producer of cult films, Dino De Laurentiis expired in Los Angeles yesterday. Laurentiis, the man behind more than 500 films, left an indelible footprint in a career that spanned half a century. He became known as a tireless deal-maker who was never afraid to bet big on an extravagant idea that had captured his imagination.
His early hits ranged from Italian titles La Strada and Nights of Cabiria, both of which won Academy Awards. He also made Barbarella, War and Peace and the Al Pacino starrer Serpico.
Later he produced films like the series of Conan the Barbarian films and The Silence of the Lambs sequels Hannibal, Red Dragon and Hannibal Rising.
Laurentiis was equally famed for his flops. Dune, which burned $40 million in 1984 and the 1976 remake of King Kong and 1977‘s Orca were some films that did him in.
He suffered a near-bankruptcy in 1988, at the age of 70, yet bounced back with a sense of ambition which will see him remembered as a survivor in the great tradition of outsized Hollywood producers. He later tasted success with Breakdown, U-571 and the final three Hannibal Lecter titles.
In the late 1950s, De Laurentiis developed the “international co-production”, in which Hollywood studios would film overseas, where backstage labour was cheap. Anthony Quinn came to Rome for La Strada, followed by Kirk Douglas (Ulysses) and Audrey Hepburn and Henry Fonda (War and Peace).
He built a massive film studio near Rome. But it soon hit financial difficulties when the Italian government tightened subsidy regulations. Eventually, the business failed, ending his relationship with Ponti and persuading him to emigrate to Hollywood in the early 1970s.
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.
