First AI-Powered Movie Camera Turns Footage Into Fantastical Films On The Fly
Video screenshots via SpecialGuestX
A new camera seeks to make your artificial intelligence-fueled dreams a reel-ity. The CMR-M1, developed by creative technology agency SpecialGuestX and mixed-media production company 1stAveMachine, prides itself on being the world’s first AI-powered movie camera, transforming raw footage into surreal imagery on the go.
Short for Camera Model 1, the CMR-M1 turns to early 20th-century gear—such as the classic Ciné-Kodak—as its aesthetic muse, packing contemporary features into an old-school box. It utilizes the popular AI art generator Stable Diffusion to apply creative filters while recording. This enables filmmakers to edit their footage in real-time.
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The real magic happens when the CMR-M1 transforms reality into vibrant visual narratives. SpecialGuestX has trained five Stable Diffusion Low-Rank Adaptations (LoRAS), each accompanied by a Style Card that the camera can read contactlessly. These cards allow users to capture footage, edit clips, and define the AI’s strength within a single device. For instance, the ‘Old Money Style Card’ can turn ordinary outfits into tuxedos and sprinkle gold coins into the background to make a character seem obscenely wealthy.
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The camera comes equipped with interchangeable lenses, accessory bars, a matte box, and a tripod base, providing a familiar tactile experience. Beneath its nostalgic exterior, the camera houses advanced technology, including a FLIR sensor for thermal imaging, a Snapdragon CPU, and a viewport for scene monitoring.
Although the current prototype captures footage at a resolution of 1,368 x 768 at 12 frames per second, future versions are expected to enhance these specs significantly.
After filming, the footage is sent to a cloud-computing service for AI processing. While there is currently some latency between recording and processing, SpecialGuestX assures that real-time processing will be possible as AI video models evolve.
[via PetaPixel, CineD, Little Black Book, videos and images via SpecialGuestX]
