Divergent Producer Launches AI-Driven Studio to Create Low-Budget, High-Quality Films

A 'Divergent' producer wants to use AI to make 30 new projects in the next 4 years

Pouya Shahbazian, a producer of the Divergent film franchise, has launched Staircase Studios AI, a film, television, and video game production company aiming to use AI to streamline filmmaking and cut costs. The studio said it already has plans to produce approximately 30 "near-major studio quality" projects over the next three to four years, each with a budget under $500,000. In a press release today, Staircase Studios AI revealed that it has acquired the rights to nearly 20 scripts and several intellectual properties. Among its first slate of projects are a film adaptation of Wild Night, a novel by New York Times bestselling author Patrick Lee, and a procedural television series from Gabe Rotter, a writer and producer on The X-Files reboot in 2015. The company also released a teaser showcasing the first five minutes of its debut feature film, The Woman With Red Hair. Directed by Brett Stuart, the film is based on a script by Michael Schatz that appeared on the 2016 Black List, the annual industry survey of Hollywood's best unproduced screenplays. The film also boasts original character designs from Oscar-nominated artist Teddy Newton, a former member of Pixar's (DIS-3.66%) brain trust who helped design characters for The Incredibles. Additional artwork and designs come from Emmy Award-winning animator Alfred Gimeno, who worked on Kung Fu Panda. You can see for yourself how the studio's AI measures up. "After packaging and selling 150 projects into the studio system over the past 15 years, I've borne witness to far too much inefficiency to continue the status quo," Shahbazian said in a statement. "Over the past year, I've dedicated myself to pairing ethical AI usage with our industry's most underutilized assets -- overlooked stories waiting to be produced from fantastic writers and directors." Shahbazian is collaborating with Brett Stuart, who serves as the studios's head of AI filmmaking. The company's lead investor and partner is Kenneth Lerer, co-founder of The Huffington Post. According to Staircase, it has developed a proprietary AI-powered workflow called ForwardMotion. The studio emphasizes that it will work with union members in many production departments, including actors, who will be paid industry-standard rates to voice all dialogue.

'Divergent' Producer Launches AI Company That Aims to Make Studio-Quality Movies for $500,000

Pouya Shahbazian, a producer on the Divergent franchise, has launched Staircase Studios AI, an artificial intelligence-driven film, TV and gaming studio. Staircase touts its own proprietary AI workflow, ForwardMotion, which claims to be able to produce near-studio-quality movie releases for under $500,000 each. The studio, which said it aims to produce around 30 low budget projects in the next three to four years, unveiled a teaser with the first five minutes from its debut feature, The Woman With Red Hair, directed by Brett Stuart and from Michael Schatz's 2016 Black List script. The AI-driven film has original character designs by former Pixar exec Teddy Newton (The Incredibles) and art and designs from Emmy-winning animator Alfred Gimeno (Kung Fu Panda). The drama about a true-life war resister in World War II Holland is voiced by Maya-Nika Bewley, Leander Vyvey, Angus Castle-Doughty and Geoffrey Breton. Staircase Studios AI has as a partner and lead investor Kenneth Lerer, a co-founder of The Huffington Post and currently managing director emeritus of the venture capital firm Lerer Hippeau. Shahbazian becomes CEO of the film, TV and gaming studio, while Brett Stuart serves as head of AI filmmaking. "After packaging and selling 150 projects into the studio system over the past 15 years, I've borne witness to far too much inefficiency to continue the status quo. Over the past year, I've dedicated myself to pairing ethical AI usage with our industry's most underutilized assets-overlooked stories waiting to be produced from fantastic writers and directors," Shahbazian, whose producer credits include Greg Berlanti's Love Simon and Shawn Levy and Eric Heisserer's Shadow & Bone, said in a statement.