Academy said to offer courses in 11 languages in 170 countries
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Curious Refuge AI film school attracts 10,000 students globally
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Interest in AI grows in Hollywood though many remain wary
I kind of just embraced it,” Eng said of diving into AI tools after he was sidelined. “I jumped in.”
Many in Hollywood remain wary of artificial intelligence, with critics pointing to last year’s debut of the AI-generated actress Tilly Norwood -- condemned by the SAG-AFTRA actors union as replacing human performers with “synthetics” -- as a prime example of the industry’s unease.
AI SKILLS SCHOOL DRAWS 10,000 STUDENTS
Eng is one of 10,000 students who have attended Curious Refuge's courses or workshops, looking to update their skills, the school says. Co-founders Caleb and Shelby Ward say 95% of the current students are entertainment or advertising industry professionals looking for new skills as artificial intelligence gains a foothold in Hollywood.
Molnar said she saw herself as a creative person but was unable to gain entry into art school in her native Budapest. She was working as a dental hygienist in London when the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered her dental office. She used the time to explore her creative side, enrolling in classes -- initially studying digital product design and building her own dental app.
The rise of AI-powered chatbots like ChatGPT and image generators like Midjourney led her to Curious Refuge, where she began taking courses in 2023.
She has found a new career in advertising, using AI to create promotional videos, including one for AI infrastructure company WhiteFiber that was shown on the Nasdaq's seven-story-tall LED video screen in Times Square when the company went public in September.
"AI genuinely changed my life," Molnar said.
ONLINE AI TRAINING STARTUP BECOMES GLOBAL HUB
Founded in 2020, Curious Refuge began offering courses in AI-assisted documentary and narrative filmmaking and in advertising in early 2023. It now provides instruction in 11 different languages to students in 170 countries. Other educators, such as the Los Angeles Film School, offer an online bachelor's degree in digital filmmaking, and major film schools also are incorporating generative AI into their curriculums.
The Curious Refuge classes are pre-recorded and made available behind an online paywall, allowing students to learn at their own pace.
Instructors hold weekly office hours to answer questions, and the school hosts regular meet-ups, including at the Cannes Film Festival and in major cities around the world. Meanwhile, the Discord platform, which is popular with gamers and programmers, has become a virtual place for the Curious Refuge community to gather.
Curious Refuge also has provided AI training and workshops at studios, which its founders could not identify because of non-disclosure agreements.
“We love to step in and create a baseline of understanding for the entire studio,” said Curious Refuge CEO and co-founder Caleb Ward. “Here's what's possible with artificial intelligence. Here are the creative possibilities. Here are just different takeaways that you can get from utilizing the technology.”
AI SHIFTS JOBS AS HOLLYWOOD SEEKS NEW SKILLS
One 2024 study commissioned by the Concept Art Association and the Animation Guild predicted that nearly 120,000 jobs in film, television and animation would be