International
Chris Weitz to helm the film adaptation of his post apocalyptic novel, The Young World
MUMBAI: The end of the world phenomenon has always worked well at the box office and it seems the evident reason why apocalyptic themes attract the movie makers the most. After Dreamworks Animation acquired the rights of Francesca Haig‘s The Fire Sermon, Warner Bros won the rights to the post-apocalyptic book trilogy, The Young World after a heated auction on Friday.
Chris Weitz, the filmamaker (New Moon) turned author of the The Young World would also helm the director‘s chair for the big screen adaptation of his book. The novel is the first in a trilogy and centres on teenagers surviving the post apocalyptic and catastrophic event killing everyone but those between the ages of 12 and 21. Ill- equipped to restore the society back to a working one, the teenage survivors of New York City must try to rebuild their world from the ground up.
Weitz‘s novel will be published in 2013 by Little Brown while the film adaptation will be produced by Andrew Miano and co- produced by Depth of Field.
Weitz who has recently directed 2011‘s A Better Life, has previously directed the film adaptation of the novel The Golden Compass, a major international hit, and the film adaptation of New Moon from the series of Twilight books (the film grossed more than $700 million worldwide).
Chantal Nong brought the project into the studio and will oversee with Lynn Harris. Weitz is represented by WME and attorney Alex Kohner of Morris Yorn Barnes & Levine.
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.
