📸 AP's Controversial Gaza Snap

OpenAI's Tinseltown dreams 🎥; AP's Gaza photo sparks debate 📸; TikTok is now in session, Europe 🎓

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Welcome, creative friends!

Could Sora be the next Spielberg? OpenAI’s latest project has Tinseltown buzzing. Get the script—or should we say, code?—on this.

In today's rundown

VISUAL CREATORS
For your artistic side.

Altman’s meetings have sparked concerns about the potential impact of AI on creatives and the aftermath of last year’s strike by screenwriters and actors to secure protections against AI-generated content.

With Sora’s capabilities scheduled to be introduced to Hollywood, it is clear that Open AI has planned to take maximum advantage of this rare opportunity to disturb the film business while the industry is weak and recovering.
While many artists are awaiting the return of the industry, Open AI is strategically planning meetings behind closed doors with Hollywood and potential policymakers, being very careful to not include artists in the discussion.
Open AI’s posture in privet does not confirm its public claim that Sora is designed to be a tool for artists and not a replacement

LinkedIn thread posted by a senior VFX compositor

On the other hand, some professionals who have had early access to Sora are impressed with its capabilities and see potential for collaboration.

PRODUCTION MASTERY
The commercial aspects of creativity.

Ali Mahmud’s award-winning image for the Associated Press on the Pictures of the Year website

The Associated Press won the “Team Picture Story of the Year” at the 81-year-old competition, Pictures of the Year, but the award was revoked shortly after due to controversy. The award was prompted by a submission from photographer-ally Mahmud, who has recently faced allegations of having close ties to the terrorist organization Hamas.

Mahmud’s winning image, which captured the lifeless body of German-Israeli artist Shani Louk, during which Louk was being transported by Hamas militants after her abduction, sparked widespread outrage and prompted several major news outlets to distance themselves from Mahmud. The AP, however, continues to use Mahmud as a freelancer.

Once the news broke that Mahmud’s image won the contest, some contest-goers took to social media to express their disgust and called into question the contest’s organizers for their “lack of humanity” and “decency.”

The father of the deceased, Nissim Louk, responded differently, saying he was glad the image won as it will help to “inform the future” and become an iconic image much like the “Jew raising his hands” or “the paratroopers at the Western Wall.”

CREATOR ECONOMY
Navigating the digital creative world.

The new feature will spotlight trustworthy educational content, including subtitles translated by professionals and fact-checking by Common Sense Networks and Poynter Institute. Physicist @particleclara and @NewScientist will join the creator lineup.

Since launching in the U.S., a third of teens visit the STEM feed weekly—a promising stat that suggests good vibes for global expansion.

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🔥 Press Worthy

📽️ VISUAL CREATORS

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School offers option to edit out disabled students from group photos. Photographer's company cites confusion on current policy, says they "just respond to what we are asked for”.

📈 PRODUCTION MASTERY

Adobe Firefly turns 1, adds Structure Reference tool for more versatile image generation.

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🎭 CREATOR ECONOMY

Perplexity’s AI search engine will introduce native ads, which will appear as sponsored questions.

Samsung counters Google-Apple AI deal, offers its own AI suite for free on smartphones through 2025.

📚 Learn & Grow

📽️ VISUAL CREATORS

📈 PRODUCTION MASTERY

🎭 CREATOR ECONOMY

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