Filmmaker Jorge Gutierrez says he will not be making a hybrid generative AI series with Amazon after all.
The Maya and the Three and The Book of Life director wrote on social media on Friday that he was dropping out of a Punky Duck series that had been announced at Amazon’s AI on the Lot event just two days earlier.
“I have decided to drop out of the AI program at Amazon. I will not be making a Punky Duck series. Actions speak louder than words,” the filmmaker wrote on social media. “My intent was to showcase artists, both new and seasoned, both inside and outside the studios, driving this new tech. My sincerest apology to those I upset. I promise to do better moving forward. Thank you for your patience with me. I will try harder.”
The Hollywood Reporter has reached out to Amazon for comment.
A boldfaced name in animation, Gutierrez was the highest-profile director associated with a project emerging from Amazon’s new GenAI Creators Fund. His Punky Duck series was set to follow “a lovable punk duck and his best friend, Smiley Cat” as they “tear through a wildly exaggerated Los Angeles, hilariously stumbling into alien invasions, giant monsters, robot criminal conspiracies, telenovela-style family drama, and supernatural mayhem—all while trying (and usually failing) to do the right thing.”
His remarks follow criticism from another creator whose work was announced in association with the initiative. On Wednesday, the creator of the star of Buzzfeed Studios’ Good Advice Cupcake slammed the company for partnering with Amazon on a generative AI series adaptation of her creation. Loryn Brantz said she was “horrified and disgusted by BuzzFeed taking my character, The Good Advice Cupcake, and giving it to an AI platform.”
Gutierrez hinted that he was rethinking the decision in a social media post on Thursday, telling followers that he had “lots of information that I’m digesting wholeheartedly” amid backlash to his association with GenAI Creators Fund. He added, “I am absolutely understanding the concern of using AI to assist an animation pipeline. For all those showing me grace, I really appreciate it. I have a lot to think about.” The post was followed by many comments opposed to the use of AI in animation.
Many in the animation community are suspicious of and ethically conflicted about generative AI tools. In an interview with THR earlier in the week, Albert Cheng, the head of AI Studios for Amazon MGM Studios, said that the GenAI Creators Fund found animation projects by receiving referrals from the Amazon animation team and agents aware of filmmakers curious about the technology. “You kind of wanted to have people who are leaning into it or curious. Not a whole lot of people are,” Cheng admitted.
