The Machine Cinema Times - July 11th, 2025
... still wondering if robots have celluloid dreams.
Edited by Elizabeth Kealoha. Pod Digest by Ant Neely
In this issue:
Real Creative “Pick of the Week”
“Overheard in Basecamp” for the week July 2 - July 9, 2025
*Check out the linked NotebookLM podcast below if you’re too busy to read!
New Podcast: The Mediator Speaks: Doug Shapiro on What’s Next In Media
Real Creative “Pick of the Week”
Each week the Machine Cinema members + the Real Creative team obsess over social feeds in search of the world's best AI creative video, gaming, and music projects. This week one project stuck out:
About this project: “Made By Marey” showcases what's possible with the new Marey video model from Moonvalley. The video here was created by Paul Trillo and his team at Asteria, and is a great demonstration how creators have a new level of control with features like Motion Direction, Camera Control and Motion Transfer. In this case actors and animators combine to enable a monkey to walk over and play with a computer in space. Marey was built on fully licensed IP and images, and is now available for anyone to use.
Paul Trillo: Website / LinkedIn
Asteria Film Co: Website / LinkedIn / IG
You can find this and over 300 AI filmmakers and their projects over at realcreative.ai which features some familiar faces from the Machine Cinema community.
Overheard in Basecamp – Week of July 2–9, 2025
Our Machine Cinema Basecamp is a firehose of activity and even the most diehard members of our community can feel overwhelmed sometimes. This weekly digest of hot topics discussed, links and articles shared and discussed is here to make sure you never miss a beat.
If you’d like to join the conversation, this link is your invitation.
Full disclosure, we had our robot friend help us pull all this together and sometimes they are prone to making harmless mistakes.
Are you too busy to read this? Have a listen with this link instead!
🔥 HOT TOPICS
🎶 Hope, Blues, and the Power of Real Emotions in AI Music Video
A community-made AI music video sparked deep conversation around emotional authorship in synthetic filmmaking. The lyrics, entirely human-written, elevated the piece beyond aesthetic slickness and inspired discussions on blues, catharsis, and spiritual resistance to despair.
Tools used: Midjourney, Hailuo, Suno, Audimee, After Effects
Lyrics anchored the video emotionally—showing where AI ends and storytelling begins
💬 “AI can give you everything… except something real to say.”
🧠 YouTube's AI Crackdown Sparks Monetization Panic
YouTube’s policy update targeting “mass-produced” AI content triggered alarm among creators. Many debated whether this was a legitimate quality control move or a vague crackdown on the future of visual storytelling.
Key concern: demonetization of high-effort AI-native content
Suggested pivot: use YouTube as a marketing funnel, not a monetization endpoint
Mixed reaction: some saw it as necessary cleanup; others called out YouTube’s role in pushing low-effort formats
💬 “The irony? YouTube built the demand, now it’s mad the supply showed up.”
🎬 Veo 3’s Takeover: Dialog, Audio, and the End of ‘Silent’ AI Films
Veo 3’s integration of lipsync and audio is reframing expectations. Community consensus: this might be the first AI model that genuinely understands cinematic voice.
Lip sync accuracy praised, but some still supplement with ElevenLabs for consistency
Ongoing debate over whether VEO 3 beats out MJ+Runway+Act I stacks
Google’s integration of audio features is seen as a major edge
💬 “Good sound is the canary in the coal mine—it separates AI videos from real AI films.”
🎭 Comedy’s AI Moment
A new AI sketch comedy competition caught attention—not just for the prize, but for the industry-level eyes watching it.
Participants encouraged to submit to the Curious Refuge challenge
Comedy is now seen as one of the most fertile grounds for discovering new AI-native talent
Chernin Entertainment and top showrunners are reportedly scouting entries
💬 “Comedy is a big deal right now… Don’t sleep on this one.”
📢 Screenwriting GenJam Incoming
Several members voiced strong interest in AI-augmented screenwriting. A GenJam dedicated to this is now in motion.
Community members invited to test the SAGA tool and a new Udemy course
Enthusiasts shared experiences using AI to complete feature-length scripts
The upcoming GenJam will spotlight hybrid workflows and shareable examples
💬 “AI won’t replace writers—but it might finally finish their drafts.”
🎨 Character Consistency Is Still a Puzzle
Maintaining visual coherence across shots and scenes is still tough—even with Veo 3. Creators swapped workflow tips, from LoRAs to reference stacks.
Favorites: Midjourney, Runway, Krea, Flux Kontext, HeyGen
Still a manual grind for detailed edits like hair or outfit changes
Some suggest pre-building scenes as a workaround
💬 “You must remind yourself: manual still exists.”
🌍 New Faces, Global Growth
The community expanded with creators from Lagos to Amsterdam to Argentina. Projects launched, festivals opened for submissions, and GenJams forged new cross-border friendships.
The Netherlands stood out as a rising ecosystem post-GenJam
Naija AI Film Festival opened global submissions
“Fast channel” launches, Discords created, and venture studios pitched
💬 “We’re in a spiritual war against loss of hope. Our art is the counterforce.”
🧠 Audience Bias & Story-First Filmmaking
The group returned to an ongoing question: should AI filmmakers disclose their use of AI? Many agreed: transparency builds trust, but storytelling must still come first.
BTS content reframes the conversation
Avoiding AI jargon in public releases is still a recommended strategy
Emerging consensus: let the emotional core of the work speak louder than the tech
💬 “Make movies for people who hate AI.”
🎥 Tool Battles, Naming Conventions, and Scene Management
As more creators stack tools across image and video pipelines, new pain points emerged—especially around asset tracking.
Some shared naming conventions and asset batching strategies
Others called for a more universal system for managing iterations and references
SDXL + Comfy workflows continue to gain fans for power users
💬 “Build out a shot list. Batch for scenes. Save your sanity.”
🔗 Link Drop: What the Community Shared
🧪 Tools & Industry
🎥 Film & Art Projects
📚 Thought Pieces
Podcast: From Attention Economy to Action Economy w/ Doug Shapiro
Links to longer conversation on Youtube, Spotify, and Apple. Follow us on Instagram.
In this conversation, Fred and Minh meet Doug Shapiro to explore the evolving landscape of the media business, emphasizing the shift from an attention economy to an action economy where trust becomes paramount. They discuss the implications of AI on content creation and consumption, the original sin of the internet, and the importance of authenticity in building trust with audiences. The dialogue also touches on the challenges and opportunities for creators in a rapidly changing environment, highlighting the need for innovation and adaptability.
Must Read: Doug Shapiro, Trust is the New Oil: From the Attention Economy to the Action Economy
Check out: ‘The Mediator’, Doug’s Substack
AI on the Lot Keynote: The Next Great Disruption of Media, Doug Shapiro
Connect and Follow Doug on LinkedIn
GenTalks Community Call 7/9 - recap
Our GenDojo Community Call is a weekly digital get together to connect on how we are all making our way through this new era for creative industries and AI among other emergent technologies. Each week we invite artists, builders, thought leaders to share their knowledge, their works in progress and their ideas on this emergent space. If you’d like to be added to the recurring invite please DM.
Recording: View- 63 minutes
Guests: Founder of m ss ng p eces, Ari Kuschnir, Winston Mayo of Glory House Studios
Meeting Summary
This call featured two in-depth presentations from artists operating at the cutting edge of generative media, both exploring the intersection of values, imagination, and AI. Filmmaker and creative producer Ari Kuschnir shared his rapid-fire process for making transformative political parables using generative tools, emphasizing sincerity and intuition over cynicism and spectacle. Winston Mayo of Glory House Studios followed with a comprehensive look at his Christian-focused media company, showing how faith-based storytelling, spec ads, and remote teamwork are converging into a new model for indie creative entrepreneurship.
Highlights & Themes
Ari Kuschnir – Protopian Experiments in AI Film
Editing as a superpower: Ari shared how his background as an editor gives him an edge in AI storytelling—he knows what shots he needs and how to build emotion efficiently.
Transformative satire: His viral Trump-on-ayahuasca video imagined redemption arcs for divisive figures—not as parody, but as sincere provocations of what’s possible.
From silent film to sync: Ari framed recent advances in voice and character consistency as a leap from “silent film” to the early dialogue era—unlocking full scenes and deeper narratives.
Workflow: He works intuitively, often starting with an image or music cue, storyboarding in Sora or Midjourney, and assembling scenes in VO3 or Kling. Projects are completed in hours, not weeks.
Ethics & intention: Ari treats each piece as an experiment rooted in imagination and empathy, countering the flood of darker AI content with emotional sincerity.
Tool reflections: He and Fred noted the role of Instagram as a “free licensing loophole” for iconic music synced to video—providing creative hacks but not without risk.
Winston Mayo – Building Glory House Studios
Legacy-driven storytelling: Winston introduced his studio’s core mission—telling stories that reflect light, grace, and Christian values across diverse cultures and genres.
Spec ads as growth engine: Their “Make Commercials Funny Again” campaign focuses on creating broad, industry-wide spec ads that can be adapted and pitched to multiple brands.
Team & tools:
Storyboarding in MidJourney, video creation in Runway (for its unlimited plan and rotoscoping/lip sync).
Talent sourced globally, with editing and casting spanning Nigeria, California, and Atlanta.
Uses Christiancasting.com for finding actors willing to work for credit, pay, or reel content.
Content approach: One Bible-based film per year, plus original Christian stories with genre diversity—musicals, comedies, action, and beyond.
Audience & platform strategy:
YouTube for staying power.
TikTok for shareability.
LinkedIn for client work and commercial reach.
Philosophy: “Be Chick-fil-A with media.” High conviction, clean content, real excellence.