MEXICO CITY.-Controversy over use Artificial intelligence continues to develop in the film industry, and this time, the heroine of the series “WandaVision” joined the debate, raising doubts about trust in this technology.
Alexandria Rubalcaba, who worked as an extra in a Marvel production, hHe raised his voice denouncing that his photo had been scanned and used on a computer without receiving any compensation.
Rubalcaba, who was part of the show’s supporting cast, revealed that his face and body were captured during a scanning session without being informed of the future use of said footage. This practice is no stranger to the industry because extras are hired to play supporting and environmental roles in scenes, often without clearly showing his face. They can play a variety of roles, from participating in huge battles to simply filling spaces in scenes from everyday life.
They told us: put your hands out, put your hands in, look here, look this way, once scared, once surprised,” Rubalcaba told NPR radio station.
“What if I don’t want to be in MarioVision or SarahVision? I think eventually AI will remove the supporting actors so they won’t have to use us,” he said.
Fear of actors
Rubalcaba’s main concern is the lack of control supporting actors have over the fate of their scanned images. “What if I don’t want to be part of MarioVision or SarahVision? I feel like eventually AI will eliminate the need to support actors because studios might just digitally replicate us,” he mused.
The WandaVision series, an offshoot of the Avengers universe, explores an unknown aspect of the characters “Scarlet Witch” and “Vision”, telling the story of parallel lives as a couple, even with children.
Scanning actors, strike issue
Scanning actors has become a critical pointwhile the Screen Actors Guild of America went on strike for a month, paralyzing the film and television industry. The union is fighting to prevent studios from carrying out unrestricted scans, arguing that this could lead to further exploitation of actors without proper compensation.
Fran Drescher, President of the Union (SAG-AFTRA), recently highlighted the dangers of artificial intelligence without clear regulations in a podcast. “Wall Street, greed and technology combine to make a dangerous mix”he said during a conversation with Duncan Crabtree and Ben Whitehair, union director and national vice president.
In this context, the implementation of security has become a necessity.
“We need to put up barriers around this and everyone needs to know that this needs to be done with great care and safety standards, including lots of communication with the artist, consent and mutual compensation,” he details.
This is not a new topic, but now it is scary
While scanning actors is not new to cinema, with examples such as using Paul Walker’s face to complete parts of The Fast and the Furious after his death and creating digital doppelgängers in various films, The debate over ethical use and the rights of subjects is intensifying in an era where technology offers unprecedented opportunities.
Even the world of the porn industry has embraced this technology, superimposing the faces of Hollywood actresses on adult scenes freely circulating on the Internet.
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