International
Technicolor in 3-year subcontracting deal with Deluxe
MUMBAI: In order to effectively reduce the global footprint of film services, Deluxe Entertainment Services Group and Technicolor have inked three-year subcontracting agreements. Financial details were not disclosed.
According to the agreement, Technicolor will subcontract its 35mm bulk release printing business to Deluxe in North America, while the latter will subcontract its 35mm print distribution business in the US to Technicolor. Additionally, Deluxe will subcontract its 35mm/16mm color negative processing business to Technicolor in London.
“Today’s agreement with Technicolor is the result of significant changes in our industry enabled by new digital technologies causing the rapid transition from film to digital,” Deluxe president and CEO Cyril Drabinsky has been quoted to have said. “This agreement will help maintain a high consistency of service for our customers through the remaining life of film,” he added.
Technicolor will begin servicing Deluxe‘s US 35mm release print distribution in September and Deluxe‘s UK 35mm/16mm color negative processing at its Pinewood facility within the week.
Deluxe will stop negative processing services of 35mm/16mm films at both of its facilities in the London area, one in the Soho district and the other in Denham. It will provide 35mm bulk release printing at its Denham and other European facilities.
The steps taken by either side underscore the approaching end of the era where film dominated the theatrical motion picture industry. For nearly a century, Deluxe and Technicolor have been pillars in film services.
While Technicolor’s film development business dates back to 1914, Deluxe has been processing films since 1915. Today, the bulk of these competing businesses represent a growing range of digital entertainment services including Blu-Ray authoring, digital post-production and digital cinema distribution.
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.
