International
Hanks, Roberts team up for comedy film
MUMBAI: Tom Hanks is to pair with Julia Roberts in upcoming film Larry Crowne.
The 54-year-old has co-written the script with director Nia Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding) and was keen from the beginning to cast Roberts in the character of a teacher in the film.
“I had some teachers who looked like Julia. I would see them and think, ‘I love you, so there was never anyone but Julia. Still, even after she said yes to the role, I was the boss. That meant I got to say, ‘You don‘t wear this dress, you wear that dress and Julia‘s Julia, she can be intimidating,” Hanks is reported to have said.
Hanks will star as a middle-aged man who loses his job and decides to go back to college while Roberts plays his disillusioned teacher.
While it might be a little scary directing Roberts, the mom of three confessed that parts of filming were scary for her too.
“This was my first college experience. And the first time I had to speak in front of a classroom, I was apoplectic. All these faces looking up at me, thinking, ‘What is she going to teach us? I needed to find my composure. It was very hard it was terrible, in fact,” she averred.
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.
