Maybaum film: different AI tools tested
AI-based software and add-ons can be found in all areas of video production and promise more efficient and simplified work processes. In the innovation and training program MayLAB, the crew of Maybaum Film tests various AI tools for two days and draws a conclusion.
From sobering to impressive, the tools are described by organizer Rafael von Sury: "The progress made in recent years is remarkable. Especially in the area of deep fake, interframe calculation - video frame interpolation - and speech recognition. There are various possibilities to make everyday life easier or even to go new creative ways."
Six teams tested twelve tools for their suitability for everyday use. It was important to the agency that all departments - creation, production and distribution - were involved. The teams have now summarized the most important findings.
Deepfakes Web not yet ready, RIFE convinces
Deepfake videos and simple deepfake apps are omnipresent. The apps recognize faces in photos and videos and can exchange them with other faces. However, according to Maybaum Film, the tools do not yet provide the necessary (high) resolution to make their way into post-production, and for the time being remain a gimmick for funny social media posts.
The RIFE app can be used to interpolate video frames. The app calculates intermediate frames and can thus create slow motion from normally shot footage. In tests with self-shot video material at 25 frames per second, the app delivers impressive slow motion with up to 32x deceleration. Calculating intermediate frames is also very useful for stop-motion. This way, smooth or slow motion can be calculated from videos with low frame rates.
Resemble.ai could still be improved - Töggl very useful
Resemble.ai is an AI voice generator. Words and texts are loaded into the tool and output as spoken text. Predefined female and male voices can be used or a voice avatar can be created based on the user's own voice. The tool is not yet sufficient to keep up with professional speakers. However, it delivers useful results for quick layouts - for example, as a basis for a rough cut.
In addition to Adobe's own voice recognition tool "Speech-to-text", the tool "Töggl" from Switzerland was particularly convincing. Töggl recognizes voices even in dialect and can thus quickly transcribe interview sequences, for example. It is not completely error-free, but still saves a lot of time. Both Premiere and Töggl deliver very good results.
Colourlab.ai has a lot of potential
Colourlab.ai wants to revolutionize the process of color grading, but delivers little usable results under real conditions. In addition to technical problems, the tool did not recognize identical or similar clips in Maybaum Film's test projects and therefore did not deliver homogeneous color grading. Nevertheless, it is worth keeping an eye on the tool, concludes the film production. Because functions such as creating looks based on a photo are promising.
MayLAB at Maybaum Film takes place twice a year. Here, the film production teams test out new technologies, track down trends - and promote cross-departmental exchange to boot.
