Hollywood talent agencies have reportedly been looking to sign AI actress Tilly Norward, the first creation of AI talent studio Xicoia.
Founded by actor, comedian technologist Eline Van der Velden, the AI talent studio has set its sights on creating digital movie stars with Tilly Norward as its first prospect. Speaking on a panel at the Zurich Summit this past Saturday alongside Verena Puhm, head of Luma AI’s new Studio Dream Lab LA, Van der Velden said that studios are quietly embracing AI.
“We were in a lot of boardrooms around February time, and everyone was like, ‘No, this is nothing. It’s not going to happen’. Then, by May, people were like, ‘We need to do something with you guys.’ When we first launched Tilly, people were like, ‘What’s that?’, and now we’re going to be announcing which agency is going to be representing her in the next few months,” said Van der Velden.
According to Deadline, the revelation just days after Van der Velden “officially announced the creation of Particle6 offshoot Xicoia, an AI talent studio designed to create, manage and monetize a new generation of hyperreal digital stars.”
Verena Puhm agreed that studios are warming up to AI.
“I remember having meetings with the studios as an AI artist before joining Luma. Some said, ‘Oh, no, we’re not using AI.’ I knew some were lying, they were already secretly working on some stuff, but some were not open to it at all. Then definitely this year, kind of like March, April, people called me and wanted to talk to me,” said Puhm.
“They were discussing me being a liaison between directors and the AI artists… at that time I was traveling around a lot and educating about workflows and pipelines and how it can be integrated, and then all a sudden that was becoming very interesting to them,” Puhm added. “It was a different language to them and they were like, ‘We really have to get people from the outside that have worked in the AI industry.’”
Puhm said that she is under NDA about the type of AI projects studios are now employing behind closed doors.
“We really want to make them feel comfortable through their testing, through their projects, and working on real projects… we want it to be their decision on when they want to say it out loud, but honestly, I think this year is going to be interesting. In the beginning of next year, there’s going to be a lot of announcements,” said Puhm.
Paul Roland Bois directed the award-winning Christian tech thriller, EXEMPLUM, which has a 100% Rotten Tomatoes critic rating and can be viewed for FREE on YouTube, Tubi, or Fawesome TV. “Better than Killers of the Flower Moon,” wrote Mark Judge. “You haven’t seen a story like this before,” wrote Christian Toto. A high-quality, ad-free rental can also be streamed on Google Play, Vimeo on Demand, or YouTube Movies. Follow him on X @prolandfilms or Instagram @prolandfilms.
