A building collapses in Buenos Aires. Toxic snowfall blankets the city. Millions perish.
That’s the haunting backdrop of The Eternaut, an Argentinian drama that just made history as the first Netflix series to integrate generative AI into its production process.
For this groundbreaking sequence—a massive building collapse in the heart of Buenos Aires—AI-powered tools were deployed to handle the visual effects. According to Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos, the results weren’t just impressive; they were game-changing. The AI-generated scene was completed ten times faster than traditional VFX workflows could manage.
Sarandos called it “an incredible opportunity to make films and series better, not just cheaper.” And for the creators of The Eternaut, it meant they could bring a powerful vision to life without the usual time or budget constraints.
That’s the real story here: AI is becoming less about replacing people and more about expanding what’s possible.
From Limitation to Liberation
For decades, certain ideas lived only in the imagination of filmmakers—too ambitious, too expensive, too technically complex to make real. AI is changing that. It’s leveling the playing field for creators who’ve always had the storytelling vision but not the Hollywood-sized budget.
Imagine an indie filmmaker in Lagos who wants to render futuristic cityscapes. Or a Black sci-fi director in Atlanta with a story that rivals Blade Runner but a fraction of the funding. Generative AI isn’t just a production shortcut—it’s a creative unlock, empowering more voices to tell bigger stories.
And let’s not ignore the ripple effect for audiences. Co-CEO Greg Peters says Netflix is also testing AI for personalized recommendations, allowing viewers to simply say, “I want a dark psychological thriller from the 80s” and get exactly that. It’s about connection—connecting audiences to stories they didn’t even know they were craving.
The Human Factor Still Matters
Of course, these advances bring new questions. How do creative roles evolve in an AI-assisted industry? What happens to traditional workflows? These are important conversations—but they don’t have to be fear-driven.
AI isn’t erasing human creativity; it’s amplifying it. A building may collapse on-screen faster than ever before, but someone still had to imagine why it fell, who was trapped beneath it, and what it meant for the story. That part—the soul of storytelling—remains profoundly human.
So rather than see AI as a threat, the real opportunity is in how we blend human imagination with machine capability.
The Bigger Picture
Netflix’s move with The Eternaut is more than a technical milestone. It’s a glimpse into the future of entertainment—one where creative vision is less limited by money, geography, or time. One where ideas that once felt impossible can come to life.
The question now isn’t whether AI will be part of filmmaking. It’s how we use it. Will we wield it thoughtfully, to give more diverse creators access to tools they’ve never had? Will we use it to tell richer, more daring stories? Or will it become just another way to churn out content faster?
At SOLE, we believe this moment is a chance to do it right—to build a future where AI doesn’t replace the human spark, but helps it burn brighter.
Because in the end, it’s not the technology that defines the story. It’s the people behind it.
