International
Slump in DVD sales makes movies a theatrical biz
MUMBAI: A slump in DVD sales in the United States has put pressure on film producers to depend on theatrical revenues.
DVD, which was one of the main contributors to the success of a film some time back, is now finding a tough competitor in the video-on-demand (VoD) service.
The wholesale value of 415 films released on DVD in 2010 fell to $4.47 billion from $7.97 billion in 2009. Apart from VoD, the decline is also because of new media technologies.
Netflix Streaming and Redbox are being blamed for the slouch of DVD sales. Consumers are spending less on DVD because they have switched to advance technologies like Blu-ray, Netflix and VoD.
Despite Fox‘s strong sale of Avatar, the DVD sales dropped 44 per cent. Blu-ray continues to grow and generated $2.3 billion last year, representing a growth of 53 per cent. Digital downloads have also grown.
Even though Internet and VOD have the potential to become the next big thing, they are unable to level the contribution DVD made once upon a time. Walt Disney Studios has reported a 14 per cent drop in home-entertainment revenue in 2010, while Universal Pictures fell by 24 per cent.
At the Produced By conference at Disney Studios, Harvey Weinstein said, “It‘s become much more of a theatrical business because the movie has to work in theaters. There‘s no second chance. Because of the DVD decline, producers have realised the importance of theatre release and that being the deciding factor with audience.”
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.
