3 ms·

It seems odd that the money is coming from CAA. Shouldn’t they be opposed to deepfakes?

chatmasta 4y ago
There is a difference between deepfakes that are openly marketed as such, and deepfakes which are maliciously promoted as being real videos. The movie industry in general stands to benefit the most from deepfakes. Imagine making a movie without paying any cast? Or bringing dead actors back for new roles? There are plenty of legitimate use cases for deepfakes. At first glance it seems that actors would be the first victims here, and so you wouldn't expect CAA (an agency representing actors) to invest money into a technology that could replace them. But I think it's more complicated than that. Deepfakes won't "replace" actors - certainly not any time soon - but will complement them and serve as a multiplier for their image. Angelina Jolie can license her likeness, and directors can make a movie with a deepfake Jolie. She gets paid for doing no work. The A-listers will be fine. The first victims will be the talent that's cast as extras and minor supporting roles. There wont be much of a market for deepfake clones of them, and eventually some A-lister or entirely synthetic deepfakes will crowd them out of their jobs.
CyberDildonics 4y ago
You're assuming people are going to deepfake actors on to other people instead of their younger versions on to themselves.
marcusverus 4y ago
The relevant problem agencies face is that their products have a shelf life. If you're Tom Cruise's agent, why wouldn't you want to extend his career indefinitely?
- oneoff786 4y ago
  Well if you’re Tom Cruise’s agent you get a commission for the work Tom Cruise does. Not his likeness.
  - twoodfin 4y ago
    That doesn’t sound right. To use a better example than Tom Cruise, I don’t think LeBron James negotiates his own sneaker deals. Some agent is getting a cut as usual.
    - oneoff786 4y ago
      If LeBron James dies and someone somehow has the rights to his likeness, they are not an agent however. They are the rights holder. Perhaps they coincidentally also have an agent doing the work, but it is not LeBron James’s agent. :)

There is a difference between deepfakes that are openly marketed as such, and deepfakes which are maliciously promoted as being real videos. The movie industry in general stands to benefit the most from deepfakes. Imagine making a movie without paying any cast? Or bringing dead actors back for new roles? There are plenty of legitimate use cases for deepfakes. At first glance it seems that actors would be the first victims here, and so you wouldn't expect CAA (an agency representing actors) to invest money into a technology that could replace them. But I think it's more complicated than that. Deepfakes won't "replace" actors - certainly not any time soon - but will complement them and serve as a multiplier for their image. Angelina Jolie can license her likeness, and directors can make a movie with a deepfake Jolie. She gets paid for doing no work. The A-listers will be fine. The first victims will be the talent that's cast as extras and minor supporting roles. There wont be much of a market for deepfake clones of them, and eventually some A-lister or entirely synthetic deepfakes will crowd them out of their jobs.

CyberDildonics 4y ago

You're assuming people are going to deepfake actors on to other people instead of their younger versions on to themselves.

marcusverus 4y ago

The relevant problem agencies face is that their products have a shelf life. If you're Tom Cruise's agent, why wouldn't you want to extend his career indefinitely?

oneoff786 4y ago
Well if you’re Tom Cruise’s agent you get a commission for the work Tom Cruise does. Not his likeness.
- twoodfin 4y ago
  That doesn’t sound right. To use a better example than Tom Cruise, I don’t think LeBron James negotiates his own sneaker deals. Some agent is getting a cut as usual.
  - oneoff786 4y ago
    If LeBron James dies and someone somehow has the rights to his likeness, they are not an agent however. They are the rights holder. Perhaps they coincidentally also have an agent doing the work, but it is not LeBron James’s agent. :)