Netflix harnesses AI to push visual effects beyond the green screen – Decoding

Researchers at Netflix say they may have made blue screens everywhere obsolete. Described as an innovative advancement in the application of artificial intelligence in the film and television industry, Magenta Green Screen (MGS) leverages the power of artificial intelligence to enhance visual effects, making them more realistic and accurate in real time.

The streaming giant’s new technology is an impressive addition to their diverse arsenal, which already uses deep learning to tailor the user experience. Using AI, Netflix has made a name for itself in successfully profiling users and recommending content to viewers. AI has also helped Netflix create compelling highlights, summaries, and trailers to drive viewership.

Green screen technology is a widely used process that involves filming actors against a bright green background, which can later be removed and replaced digitally. This process can be automated, but problems arise when green elements appear in the foreground or when there are small details like hair or transparent objects. To solve these problems, operators often manually adjust settings or paint over frame-by-frame, a time-consuming process.

Netflix says MGS uses AI to achieve better results than a traditional green screen in a shorter amount of time than it would take to edit a typical scene.

How Netflix uses AI to improve its VFX game

The MGS method required the actors to film with bright green LEDs, with red and blue LEDs illuminating them from the front, creating a magenta glow. This unique lighting configuration produces separate red, green and blue channels. The green channel only records the background, making the foreground black, while the red and blue channels only record the foreground, making the background black.

The inclusion of AI in this system allows for real-time green channel substitution, meaning that actors can be instantly and realistically placed in the foreground of another scene. More notably, this AI technology can work accurately with transparent objects and intricate details like individual hairs, which are challenging with traditional methods.

The application of AI does not stop at the filming stage. Since the MGS technique can create objects and actors in magenta, Netflix also uses AI to restore the full range of colors in the foreground. This was done using a reference photograph of the actors normally lit.

Netflix is ​​just one of many businesses that are using the AI ​​wave. Other startups and unicorns are leveraging the use of AI technology to improve user profiles, provide better customer experiences, and optimize their products.

EQUAL decryption As recently reported, Zoom has developed a meeting summary provided by GPT. In addition, Meta is using generalized AI to create better ads, Google is improving its office suite thanks to its own LLM, and even the US Department of Defense is trying to come up with use cases. interesting use for AI as a strategic tool.

Despite the complexities involved in the MGS engineering, Netflix believes in the potential of the AI-powered GS system. However, others in the industry have reservations.

Drew Lahat from video production company Geiger Post raised concerns about the practicality of this technique in the fast-paced filming environment and its ability to compete with other emerging methods. “It could work well in a fully controlled space, but it will have to compete with other new techniques such as virtual production stages and capturing manufacturers in extreme situations,” he said. real-world situations.”

However, as Netflix researcher Paul Debevec told New Scientist, «Computers have provided such powerful tools to make many things easier. [This is] something else that we can make easier, so that the talented artists we have can focus on the art, really making things look better.»

Netflix is ​​betting on AI to not only enhance the viewer experience, but to streamline everything behind the scenes. Writers may hate AI sneaking into their business, but do VFX artists feel the same way?

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