International
Roman Polanski film premieres at Berlin fest
MUMBAI: Roman Polanski‘s new film The Ghost Writer premiered at the Berlin Film Festival yesterday.
The director could not walk the red carpet for the debut of his film that stars Ewan McGregor and Pierce Brosnan because he is under house arrest. In spite of hos absence, Polanski was still the star of the party, feted by his actors, producer and screenplay writer.
And in a new twist, the Swiss Justice Ministry declared it would make “no sense” to shift Polanski from house arrest until US courts ruled definitively that he must be sentenced in person to further jail time for having sex in 1977 with a 13-year-old girl.
“When the question is still open, why should he be extradited?” Rudolf Wyss, the ministry‘s deputy director, told the press, adding, “As long as the question is still open, our decision depends on that.”
“Even if we decide on extradition, he can still appeal. This would take many months,” he added.
Polanski‘s extradition is a complicated and diplomatically sensitive decision, as it deals with a three-decade-old case full of alleged wrongdoing by a Los Angeles judge, a confused sentencing procedure and the director‘s own flight from justice.
The Ghost Writer, based on the novel by Robert Harris, is among the 20 films competing for the Berlin festival‘s top Golden Bear honour to be awarded on 20 February.
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.
