Tilly Norwood is a London-based actress with around 40,000 Instagram followers. Also, she’s not real. She is an AI-generated character created by Xicoia, the AI division of production company Particle6.
Eline Van Der Velden, a Dutch producer who founded Particle 6, introduced Norwood’s ideas at the Zurich Film Festival in September. Van der Belden is currently looking for an agent representing Norwood, who has gained a strong response from Hollywood.
Actress Emily Blunt – known for her roles in films such as “The Devil Wears Prada”, “A Ciett Place” and “Oppenheimer” – discovered about Norwood while recording a variety podcast.
“Good Lord, we’re screwed. It’s really, really scary,” Brandt told Variety. “Now, agent, don’t do that. Stop, stop stealing human connection.”
Sag-Aftra, a union representing entertainment and media experts, has issued a statement against synthetic performers like Norwood.
“To be clear, ‘Tilly Norwood’ is not an actor. It is a character generated by computer programs trained in the work of countless professional performers without permission or compensation,” writes Sag-Aftra. “It has no experience in life, not from emotions, and not what we saw, the audience is not interested in seeing computer-generated content that is released from human experience. It does not solve the “problem” – it uses actors to use stolen performances to thwart the livelihood of performers and creates the problem of denializing human art.”
In response to backlash, van der Velden wrote an answer post on his Tilly Norwood Instagram account.
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“She is not a human replacement, she is a creative work. Like many forms of art before her, she induces conversations, and in itself demonstrates the power of creativity,” writes van der Belden.
However, real human actors have been wary of the meaning of AI that can create videos that are trustworthy. This is why organizations like SAG-AFTRA and The Writers Guild advocate for contractual protection against AI replacements, such as SAG-AFTRA and The Writers Guild, are advocating for AI replacements.
“Producers should note that whenever a synthetic performer is used, they cannot use synthetic performers without complying with contractual obligations that require notification and negotiation,” writes Sag-AFTRA.
