International
‘The Conjuring’ takes the cake as ‘R.I.P.D.’ bites the dust
MUMBAI: James Wan‘s supernatural horror flick The Conjuring is easily winning the crowded North American box-office race, while Robert Schwentke‘s R.I.P.D. appears to be staring down the barrel, according to early Friday returns.
The Conjuring, from New Line and Warner Bros, is touted to cross $30 million for the weekend, an outlandish number considering the film only cost $20 million to produce. The R-rated pic stars Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson as paranormal investigators who help a family terrorized by a dark force. Ron Livingston and Lili Taylor also star.
On the other end of the spectrum, Universal‘s R.I.P.D., which cost $130 million to produce, may only open in the $9 million to $12 million range. Based on the comic book Rest in Peace Department by Peter M. Lenkov, the movie stars Ryan Reynolds and Jeff Bridges as deceased police officers who must protect the living from evil spirits who refuse to move on. The movie, drawing comparisons to Men in Black, also stars Kevin Bacon and Mary-Louise Parker (who appears in Red 2 as well).
Opening somewhere in between are the weekend‘s two other new entries, DreamWorks Animation and 20th Century Fox‘s 3D animatedTurbo and Summit‘s Red 2. Both films are on pace to gross in the $20 million range for the weekend.
That would put Turbo‘s five-day debut at a subdued $30 million, less than hoped for and one of the lowest openings for a Dream Works Animation (DWA) title (the toon opened Wednesday).
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Turbo – battling a glut of animated product – could lose to Universal‘s megahit Despicable Me 2 for the weekend itself. Having opened two weeks ago, Despicable Me 2 has already grossed $250 million domestically and $500 million worldwide.
The film, which cost $135 million to produce and was directed by David Soren, is about an ordinary garden snail whose dream of racing in the Indianapolis 500 comes true. Reynolds voices the title role; Paul Giamatti, Snoop Dogg, Michael Pena, Maya Rudolph, Michelle Rodriguez and Samuel L. Jackson also lend their voices.
In terms of R.I.P.D., Universal can certainly withstand a box-office disappointment, considering its otherwise outstanding summer. In addition to Despicable Me 2, Fast & Furious 6 has earned $704.4 million worldwide.
Universal also minimised its risk by scaling back on its marketing campaign for R.I.P.D.
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.
