This is The Place Hollywood Goes To Learn AI

Share on Facebook Share on X Google Preferred Share to Flipboard Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Send an Email Print the Article Post a Comment This story comes from The Hollywood Reporter’s upcoming AI Issue, which publishes on March 31. Check out further stories throughout the week and the complete issue next week. If you’re 73, have worked on a string of hits ranging from Forrest Gump to Star Wars: The Force Awakens , and have two Oscars on your shelf, it might seem like a strange decision to suddenly go back to school. But for production designer Rick Carter, the rise of AI seemed like an opportunity to learn valuable new skills. “I’m just not a static person — I’m moving forward as long as I’m here and the artists I admire the most are those who’ve evolved throughout their lifetimes,” Carter says. “So that’s why I picked going down this road.” Carter began taking classes at Curious Refuge, which bills itself as the foremost school for teaching AI filmmaking skills. Related Stories Business The Sora-Disney Collapse: What Does It Mean? Business Disney Exits OpenAI Deal After AI Giant Shutters Sora Founded three years ago — forever in AI terms — Curious Refuge is the brainchild of Shelby Ward and her partner Caleb Ward. The idea was to make a “safe space” for creators from all backgrounds to learn AI storytelling and production techniques. The online-only coursework includes AI filmmaking, advertising, screenwriting, VFX and documentary. The tracks involve watching video tutorials, learning to use various AI tools and completing assignments. To pass a course, you have to create a short film using primarily AI. The Wards claim that they have thousands of current students, and that 95 percent of them are already in the entertainment or ad industries. The Wards say their students used to be shy when it came to discussing their professional lives. The school’s very name was a nod to ...