AMC Theatres Blocks AI Short Film From Screening in Pre-Show Advertising

AMC Theaters has blocked the showing of an AI-generated short film in its cinemas, amid an ongoing debate over the use of generative AI tools in filmmaking.

The nation’s largest theatrical exhibitor said it will not participate in the planned rollout of “Thanksgiving Day,” an AI animated film that won the inaugural Frame Forward AI Animated Film Festival and was set to play in U.S. theaters for two weeks through advertising distributor Screenvision Media, the film industry trade paper said. The Hollywood Reporter.

The short film would not appear in the exhibitor program on AMC screens, but as part of pre-show advertising delivered through Screenvision, which provides content to AMC and other cinema chains. AMC told THR in a statement that the company “was not involved in the creation of the content or initiative and Screenvision has informed that AMC locations will not participate.”

“Thanksgiving Day,” created by Kazakh filmmaker Igor Alferov, tells an intergalactic story about a bear and his platypus assistant who travel through space in a dumpster-shaped spacecraft.

Alferov used AI tools including Gemini 3.1 and Nana Banana Pro, relying on a keyframing method and anchor frames to guide movement, with post-processing in Topaz Video AI, according to Frame Forward website.

“For me, AI is not a replacement for creativity, but a powerful ‘exoskeleton’ for the imagination, allowing one person to build entire worlds,” Alferov said in a statement on the website.

The Frame Forward festival jury included industry figures David Dinerstein, Richard Gladstein and Julina Tatlock.

In a statement shared with THRJoel Roodman, President & Head of Studio at festival organizer MUS immersive, said: “The traditional theatrical chains are vital to our cohesion as a society, and are being quite cautious,” adding that “they may be cautious, but it is important to MUS immersive that new and exciting films, filmmakers, cinematic language and spaces for these shared experiences continue to evolve.” He added that the company plans to bring content to “our evolving network of locations,” starting in New York.

Declutter has contacted AMC Theaters and Frame Forward Festival for comment.

Global reckoning

The AMC impasse comes as the entertainment industry’s battle over AI shifts from rhetoric to action.

In December, the Creators Coalition on AI, co-founded by actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt and backed by more than 500 signatories including Natalie Portman, Cate Blanchett and Guillermo del Toro, launched to push for enforceable rules governing how AI is trained and deployed across the industry.

SAG-AFTRA, which struck for 118 days in 2023 over AI protections, last year condemned AI-generated “actress” Tilly Norwood as “a threat to human entertainers” and warned producers that they “should not use synthetic performers without meeting our contractual obligations.”

Academy Award-winning actor Matthew McConaughey recently secured eight federal trademarks, including an audio mark on his catchphrase “Okay, okay, okay,” to prevent unauthorized AI replication of his voice and likeness.

At one Variety And CNN town hall at the University of Texas at Austin, McConaughey discussed AI concerns with his “Interstellar” co-star Timothée Chalamet.

“It’s coming. It’s already here. Don’t deny it,” McConaughey said. “It won’t be enough to stand on the sidelines and make the moral case: ‘No, this is wrong.’ It won’t last. There is too much money to be made and it is too productive. So I say own yourself. Voice, likeness, etc. Notice it. Whatever you have to do, so when the time comes, no one can steal you.”

The Oscar winner is also an investor in ElevenLabs, an AI voice company he partnered with last November to produce Spanish-language versions of his “Lyrics of Livin'” newsletter using AI-replicated versions of his own voice.