How a Hollywood Sculptor Turned AI Filmmaker Is Reimagining Cinema
This week on How I AI I’m joined by James Jones, a Hollywood sculptor turned award-winning AI filmmaker and the creative force behind Satire AI. With credits on X-Men, Pirates of the Caribbean, Spider-Man, and Into the Wild, James brings decades of practical effects and storytelling experience to the world of generative cinema.Now, he’s using AI to create surreal shorts, reconstruct childhood memories, and explore social commentary through tools like Runway, Midjourney, and Stable Diffusion. His projects have been recognized at Berlin Independent Film Festival and beyond..and he’s just getting started.If you’ve ever wondered what AI filmmaking actually looks like behind the scenes, or how to get started, this episode will give you a whole new perspective.🔥 Topics We Cover:How James transitioned from big-budget Hollywood sets to solo AI filmmakingWhy he used Stable Diffusion to recreate a childhood trauma, and how it became unexpectedly therapeuticBehind the scenes of Runway’s AI Film Festival and how it's reshaping independent storytellingHis approach to character consistency using tools like Photoshop and reference promptsWhat it means to "greenlight your own work" and why AI makes it more possible than ever🛠️ AI Tools & Workflow James Uses:Image Generation: Midjourney (style refs, omni refs), Stable Diffusion, KreaVideo Generation: Runway, Veo, Luma Ray 2, Kling, Minimax, HiggsfieldEditing & VFX: Photoshop (for character isolation), CapCut, Premiere, Filmora, DaVinci ResolveVoice & Sound Design: 11 Labs, Udio, Sono.ai, BBC Sound Effects, YouTube AudioLanguage & Accessibility: Translate Mom, Subtitles in Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and FrenchWriting & Conceptualizing: Claude, ChatGPT🎥 Links & Resources Mentioned:YouTube: Satire AI – watch his shorts and experimental filmsMachine Cinema WhatsApp Community – global collective of AI filmmakersFLEX Tech Summit – AI x creativity conferenceFilmFreeway – submit your work to indie and AI film festivalsDream Recorder – an AI tool for visualizing dreams📲 Connect with James Jones:Website: https://satireai.comIMDb: James JonesYouTube: @Satire_AIEnjoy dining out? Use my inKind link to get $25 off your next $50+ meal. This is a referral link and I may receive a small reward if you use it.Want to be featured? Have a compelling AI use case or experimental workflow? Apply to be a guest at howiaipodcast.com.More About Brooke: Instagram: @thebrookegram Website: brookex.com LinkedIn: Brooke Gramer Explore: The Collective’s AI Offers More About the Podcast: Instagram: @howiai.podcast Website: howiaipodcast.com "How I AI" is a concept and podcast series created and produced by Brooke Gramer of EmpowerFlow Strategies LLC. All rights reserved.