International
Roger Deakins bags ninth ASC nomination
MUMBAI: The American Society of Cinematographers has bestowed upon Roger Deakins the ninth ASC feature film nomination of his career for his work in the Western True Grit. Other nominees are Matthew Labatique for Black Swan, Wally Pfister for Inception, Danny Cohen for The King‘s Speech and Jeff Cronenweth for The Social Network.
Deakins, who last year also served as visual consultant on the animated movie How to Train Your Dragon, has received eight Oscar nominations for his cinematography, including two in 2008 when he was nominated for both the Coen brothers‘ No Country for Old Men and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. But he has yet to take home the Oscar itself.
In addition to his nomination for the Coens‘ True Grit, he is scheduled to be honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 25th annual ASC Outstanding Achievement Awards, which will be held Feb. 13 at the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland.
Highly regarded by both cinematographers and film connoisseurs alike, Deakins won ASC awards for 1994‘s The Shawshank Redemption and 2001‘s The Man Who Wasn‘t There.
Pfister‘s nomination for Inception is his third ASC nom. He also was nominated for two other films from director Christopher Nolan like Batman Begins and The Dark Knight.
Other nominees include Matthew Labatique for Black Swan, Wally Pfister for Inception, Danny Cohen for The King‘s Speech and Jeff Cronenweth for The Social Network.
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.
