OpenAI Showcases Initial Examples from Third-Party Creators Utilizing Sora

OpenAI has been steadily sharing videos created with its highly realistic AI model, Sora, although the text-to-video tool remains unavailable to the public. For the first time, the generative AI startup showcases Sora creations from a select group of filmmakers, artists, advertising agencies, and musicians granted access to the model.

"While we have many improvements to make to Sora, we’re already getting a glimpse of how the model can help creatives bring ideas to reality,” the company stated in a recent blog post, featuring seven videos from its invitees. Among those highlighted are:

- Walter Woodman, Sidney Leeder, Patrick Cederberg – Members of shy kids, a multimedia production company in Toronto; Walter directed the short film “Air Head.”

- Paul Trillo – Multi-disciplinary artist, writer, and director.

- Nik Kleverov – Creative Director and Co-Founder of Native Foreign, an Emmy-nominated creative agency.

- August Kamp – Musician, researcher, creative activist, and multidisciplinary artist.

- Josephine Miller – Co-Founder and Creative Director of Oraar Studio, focused on 3D visuals, augmented reality, and digital fashion.

- Don Allen Stevenson III – Digital AR/XR artist, speaker, and consultant.

- Alex Reben – Sculptor/Artist and OpenAI’s Artist In Residence.

Here’s a featured video by Paul Trillo:

These creators laud the Sora technology, raising questions about bias in OpenAI’s promotion. Nevertheless, these videos reveal the technology's potential beyond OpenAI's confines. This showcase follows reports of OpenAI engaging with Hollywood filmmakers and studios to explore Sora's application in mainstream filmmaking.

The promotional push for Sora coincides with a growing skepticism toward AI-generated content, especially in the art community. Recently, the indie horror film Late Night With The Devil faced backlash for using AI-generated still images, with some calling for a boycott of films opting for AI over traditional artistry.

In response to the release of third-party Sora videos, Ed Newton-Rex, former Stability AI executive and current CEO of Fairly Trained, critiqued OpenAI for “Artistwashing,” suggesting they solicit supportive comments from select creators while using others' work without permission or compensation.

Fairly Trained is a non-profit that certifies AI models using only licensed or public domain data. OpenAI has yet to clarify the specific datasets used to train Sora. Chief Technology Officer Mira Murtai previously mentioned using “publicly available and licensed data,” later specifying at least some sourced from a license agreement with Shutterstock.