Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos surprised analysts and other video-business pundits in July, when he openly and enthusiastically discussed the use of generative artificial intelligence in the making of Argentinian post-apocalyptic sci-fi series The Eternaut.
For the Hollywood creative community, which saw the Screen Actors Guild and The Writers Guild of America shut film and TV production down for four months in the summer of 2023 due to a dual strike amid union contract negotiations that involved fighting for creative protections against the use of AI, the prospects seemed foreboding — Netflix, after all, operates in 190 countries, many of them far beyond the reach of Hollywood talent-guild collective bargaining agreements.
Solace might emerge with Netflix’s recent publication of Using Generative AI in Content Production, which provides guidelines for the streaming company’s production partners on the use of GenAI.
"Generative AI tools (GenAI) that allow users to rapidly generate new and creatively unique media (video, sound, text, and image) are increasingly being used across creative workflows in content production. At Netflix, we see these tools as valuable creative aids when used transparently and responsibly,” the document states at its outset.
The 1,900-word publication is then indexed with five hyperlinked guiding principles for GenAI use:
- The outputs do not replicate or substantially recreate identifiable characteristics of unowned or copyrighted material, or infringe any copyright-protected works
- The generative tools used do not store, reuse, or train on production data inputs or outputs.
- Where possible, generative tools are used in an enterprise-secured environment to safeguard inputs.
- Generated material is temporary and not part of the final deliverables.
- GenAI is not used to replace or generate new talent performances or union-covered work without consent.
“If you can confidently say ‘yes’ to all the above, socializing the intended use with your Netflix contact may be sufficient. If you answer ‘no’ or ‘unsure’ to any of these principles, escalate to your Netflix contact for more guidance before proceeding, as written approval may be required,” Netflix states.
SAG and WGA representatives didn’t immediately respond to StreamTV Insider’s inquiry for response to the new guidelines.
Describing the use of GenAI in The Eternaut, Sarandos told equity analysts, “In that production, we leveraged virtual production and AI-powered [visual effects]. There was a shot in the show [for which] the creators wanted to show a building collapsing in Buenos Aires. So our Eyeline team partnered with their creative team using AI-powered tools. They were able to achieve an amazing result with remarkable speed. And in fact, that VFX sequence was completed 10 times faster than it could have been completed with visual, traditional VFX tools and workflows. And, also, the cost of it would just not have been feasible for a show in that budget. So that sequence actually is the very first GenAI final footage to appear on screen in a Netflix, Inc. original series or film.”