International
Expendables, Airbender neck-to-neck at overseas b-o
MUMBAI: The Expendables and The Last Airbender are neck-to-neck as far as No.1 at the overseas box-office is concerned.
M. Night Shyamalan‘s 3D adaptation of the Nickelodeon TV series grossed an estimated $18 million from a number of 5,843 venues in 51 locations for an overseas total of $120 million.
Paramount‘s Airbender opened at No. 1 in Mexico with $4 million from 812 spots, while its first China round roped in $2.6 million from 1,500 locations. Weekend estimates puts Expendables‘ weekend tally roughly at $18 million while Expendables is playing in a total of 32 markets via various local distributors with only a handful of major territories reporting so far. Its overall haul is estimated at $75 million.
The Milennium Films /Nu Image Films super-octane action vehicle The Expendables directed by and co-starring Sylvester Stallone with Jason Stratham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Eric Roberts and Mickey Rourke, opened in Germany, Norway and Thailand in the latest round. The film stands on the No. 2 position in Germany with an estimated intake of $3.2 million from 525 sites.
20th Century Fox‘s overseas introduction of a “special edition” of Avatar at 1,046 screens in 14 markets grossed $4.26 million more than enough to push director James Cameron‘s sci fi blockbuster walk past the $2 billion foreign-gross mark.
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.
