International
Ex-Oscar president Tom Sherak died at 68
MUMBAI: Former president of Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences, Tom Sherak passed away on Tuesday, 28 January at his home in Calabas out of complications due to a long battle of 12 years with prostate cancer. At the age of 68, Sherak succumbed to his long suffering illness.
Before serving three consecutive one-year terms as president of the Academy through August 2012, Sherak had a long career at 20th Century FOX and then at Revolution Studios. Sherak brought changes to the awards, expanding the best picture nominations from five to as many as 10. He pushed the Academy to skew its annual awards show to appeal to younger viewers.
Sherak was named Los Angeles film czar by Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti in September to lead Garcetti’s efforts to support the local entertainment industry and increase local production in the city. He also was serving as a trusted adviser to Oscar-nominated American Hustle and producer Megan Ellison (Her) and to her producing brother, David Ellison (World War Z).
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.
