Like thousands of actors, Tilly Norwood is looking for an agent in Hollywood.
But unlike most young artists who aspire to succeed in the film industry, Tilly Norwood is a character created entirely with artificial intelligence. Norwood, nicknamed the first “AI” of Hollywood, is the product of a company called Xicoia, which announces itself as the first study of artificial intelligence talents of the world.
Since Dutch producer and comedian Eline Van Der Velden launched the possible digital character career, Tilly Norwood has been the topic of conversation in Hollywood.
But not in good sense. Guilds, actors and filmmakers have received the Xicoia product with an immediate wave of negative reactions, protesting because artificial intelligence should not have a leading role in the performance profession. ANDIn a statement on Tuesday, the screen actors union said that “creativity is and must remain focused on the human being.”
“To make it clear, ‘Tilly Norwood’ He is not an actress, he is a character generated by a computer program that was trained in the work of innumerable professional artistswithout permission or compensation, “said the guild.” He has no life experience from which to extract, or emotion and, from what we have seen, the public is not interested in seeing content generated by computer separated from human experience. “
Van der Velden, founder of the Production Study of the Particle6, promoted Tilly Norwood last weekend at the Zurich Summit, the parallel event of the Zurich Film Festival industry. He said then that talents were surrounding Norwood and hoped to announce a firm soon.
However, many in Hollywood expect that to never happen.
“I hope that all the actors represented by the agent who does this, drop their back, ”wrote actress Melissa Barrera (” in the heights “,” Scream “) on social networks.” How disgusting, read the room. “
“Any talent agency that participates in this should be boycotted by all guilds,” Natasha Lyonne wrote on Instagram. The “Russian Doll” star is directing a film titled “Uncanny Valley” that promises to use artificial intelligence “ethical” in combination with traditional film techniques. “Deeply mistaken and totally disturbed,” he added. “It is not the way. It is not the vibra. It is not the use.”
Artificial intelligence is often used as a tool in film production, although its implementation is very discussed. It was an important negotiation point in the long SAG-AFTRA strike that ended at the end of 2023 with some safeguards established to protect the use of the images and actions of the actors by the AI. A one -year strike of video game actors depended on the protections of AI. In July, video game actors approved a new contract that requires employers to obtain a written permit to create a digital replica.
But there have been numerous controversies about the use of AI in action. The Oscar winning film in 2024, “The Brutalist,” used artificial intelligence for Hungarian dialogue spoken by Adrien Brody and Felicity Jones’ characters, whose revelation caused a debate in the industry.
Van Der Velden responded to agitation around Tilly Norwood on Instagram.
“Those who have expressed angry at the creation of my character of AI, Tilly Norwood, she is not a replacement for a human being, but a creative work, a work of art,” said Van der Velden on Sunday. “As many art forms before her, it generates conversation, and that in itself shows the power of creativity.”
Van Der Velden did not respond to interview requests on Tuesday. In his publication, he argued that the characters of AI should be judged as their own genre.
“Creating Tilly has been, for me, an act of imagination and crafts, not very different from drawing a character, writing a role or shaping a performance,” he added. “Time, ability and iteration are needed to give life to such a character.”
That statement was also shared in Tilly Norwood’s Instagram account. Publications include photos of creation, drinking coffee, buying clothes and preparing for several projects. Until Tuesday, the account had more than 33,000 followers.
“I had a lot of fun filming some screen tests recently,” reads a publication. “Every day you feel like a step closer to the big screen.”