An AI company is set to recreate the missing 43 minutes of Orson Welles’ iconic film, The Magnificent Ambersons.
As reported by the Hollywood Reporter, Showrunner Platform aims to utilize AI technologies for this reconstruction project.
Edward Saatchi, CEO of the interactive AI filmmaking studio Fable, is overseeing the project. In a statement to Indiewire, he stated, “We’re starting with Orson Welles because he is the greatest storyteller of the last two centuries… Many people hold valid concerns about AI’s influence on cinema.”
The report indicates that the showrunner is collaborating with filmmaker Brian Rose, who has been working since 2019 to reconstruct the missing segments through animation and VFX expert Tom Clive.
Welles began production in 1942 on Ambersons, following his Oscar-winning debut with Citizen Kane. He had previously adapted the novel into a radio drama in 1939.
Unfortunately, some footage from the completed film was cut after unfavorable audience test screenings, and Welles lost final cut rights due to negotiations with the studio. While editing the film, he traveled to Brazil and started work on It’s All True, ultimately re-editing Ambersons’ finale. RKO stated that Welles felt “completely betrayed.” The master negative of the excised footage was later destroyed to free up storage space.
Numerous efforts have been made to restore or recreate the film. The working print sent to Welles in Brazil is believed to be lost. Filmmaker Joshua Grossberg is leading the search for this elusive footage. A reconstruction using still photographs was showcased at the Locarno Film Festival in 2005.
However, the search has informed Hollywood reporters that the showrunners do not hold the rights to The Magnificent Ambersons, making it unlikely that the resulting footage will be shown outside of academic settings and exhibitions. “The aim isn’t to monetize the 43 minutes, but to make it available after 80 years of speculation on whether this was the best film in its original form,” they stated.
Source: www.theguardian.com
