# Neill Blomkamp’s AI-Generated Short Film Sparks Debate Nightborne questions the role of AI in the future of cinema. - **Source:** [The Verge](https://www.theverge.com) - **Published:** 2026-07-21 - **Topic:** [Data & AI](https://brifing.si/c/data-ai) - **Original article:** - **On Brifing:** https://brifing.si/s/5a2e6ffe-f930-49a1-97d4-cbc95249830e ## AI in Cinema Neill Blomkamp unveiled Nightborne, a short film created using AI technology Seedance 2.0. The film explores a military conflict between the US and Syria, focusing on brain-dead soldiers turned into zombies. ## Technological Experiment Nightborne is Blomkamp’s experiment to test the potential of AI in filmmaking. The film showcases Seedance 2.0’s text-to-video capabilities but also highlights its technical limitations. ## Human and Machine Collaboration The film features the likenesses of 32 human actors and contributions from real concept artists. Despite human input, Nightborne feels more like machine-generated content than a piece of art. ## Technical Limitations Seedance 2.0 can produce short video clips but falls short for feature-length films. Nightborne uses cuts and documentary-style interviews to mask these limitations. ## Criticism and Backlash Nightborne faced criticism regarding AI’s role in cinema. Viewers pointed out technical flaws and the lack of creativity in AI-generated content. ## The Future of Cinema? Nightborne raises questions about AI’s future in the film industry. While technology advances, it’s not yet capable of producing finished works that excite audiences. ## Sources covering this story - https://www.theverge.com/entertainment/968703/neill-blomkamps-nightborne-barley-studios-seedance — --- _Summary written by Brifing from the original reporting. Copyright in the original article belongs to its publisher; read the full piece at the link above._