International
Books to read before they hit Indian theatres in 2014
MUMBAI: Here’s the review of the third book in the 10-part series that features the books being adapted into Hollywood movies in the year 2014.
Winter’s Tale – Mark Helprin
This Valentine Day, believe in miracles…
Starring Golden Globe award winner Colin Farrell (Alexander, In Brudges) and Jessica Brown Findlay (Downton Abbey), the live action motion picture adaptation of Mark Helprin’s bestselling 1983 romantic fantasy epic will soon make your Valentine Day getaway a New York City adventure. The film adaptation of the classic 1983 novel by Mark Helprin vacillates between 1916 and present-day Manhattan.
Take your Valentine on a journey to New York of the Belle Epoque and follow the journey of Peter Lake (Farrell), a thief who falls in love with Beverly Penn (Brown Findlay), a dying girl who has tuberculosis and occupies one of the houses he breaks into. Lake is saved from the insane Irish gangster Pearly Soames, played by Academy Award winner Russell Crowe (Gladiator) and his henchmen by Athansor, a mysterious white horse who becomes his guardian angel. Thus begins the love between the middle-aged Irishman and Beverly Penn, a young girl who is dying.
Academy Award winning director Avika Goldsman (A Beautiful Mind) called this film his passion project resulting in him producing and writing the screenplay for it.
The Newsday called the book, “a gifted writer’s love affair with the language”. On Good Reads, Winter’s Tale has a ranking of 4.05 based on 9,318 ratings.
 |
Soon after its release, Winter’s Tale was praised on the front cover of the New York Times Book Review (NYTBR), courtesy Benjamin De Mott. It was thought to be “funny, thoughtful, passionate and large-souled”.
Winter’s Tale will cast its romantic magical spell in India next Friday, 14 February.
(Watch out for the next one to add to your booklist…!)
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.
