As the film industry undergoes a rapid technological shift, Hollywood artists are racing to learn artificial intelligence. For visual-effects veteran Michael Eng, the motivation was personal. After being laid off during a recent production slowdown, he noticed a common requirement while browsing job listings in Los Angeles: experience in machine learning. In response, Eng turned to an online school specializing in AI-powered filmmaking, hoping to reinvent his career.
The school, Curious Refuge, has become a crucial training ground. Since its AI film academy launched in May 2023, it has attracted over 10,000 students. The co-founders report that a significant 95% of their current students are professionals from the entertainment or advertising industries, all seeking to update their skills as AI gains a foothold in Hollywood.
While many in the industry remain wary of AI—pointing to examples like the debut of an AI-generated actress, which was condemned by an actors union as replacing humans with “synthetics”—others are diving in headfirst. “I kind of just embraced it,” Eng said of learning the new tools. “I jumped in.”
For some students, the school has been truly life-changing. Petra Molnar, a former dental hygienist, always saw herself as a creative person but was unable to get into art school. When the pandemic shut down her dental office, she used the time to explore her creative side. The rise of AI chatbots and image generators led her to Curious Refuge, where she began taking courses in 2023. She has since built a new career in advertising, using AI to create promotional videos, including one that was displayed on a massive screen in Times Square. “AI genuinely changed my life,” Molnar said.
Founded in 2020, Curious Refuge has grown into a global hub. It now provides instruction in 11 different languages to students in 170 countries. The classes are pre-recorded and available behind a paywall, allowing students to learn at their own pace. The school fosters a community through weekly instructor office hours, regular in-person meet-ups at events like the Cannes Film Festival, and a vibrant online space on a platform popular with gamers and programmers. The school has also provided private AI training workshops for major studios, helping them establish a baseline understanding of the technology’s creative possibilities.
The impact of AI on jobs is a central topic. One study predicted that nearly 120,000 jobs in film, television, and animation could be consolidated, replaced, or eliminated by generative AI. However, some industry leaders see a parallel to the rise of YouTube, which ushered in a new generation of storytellers. They suggest that while there will be job displacement, there will also be job creation.
“There will be some job loss and job displacement, but there will also be a generation of new storytellers that emerge,” said the head of digital strategy for a major talent agency. “Financial barriers are being reduced, and people now have access to create things that were not otherwise available to them.” As the technology evolves, the race to adapt is creating new career paths even as it transforms old ones.
