John Lennon documentary director defends using AI-generated scenes: ‘He loved tech’ - The…
Director Steven Soderbergh used AI to generate 10% of a new John Lennon documentary, creating metaphorical images to accompany abstract interview segments.
- Incident date
- May 2026
- Target
- John Lennon
A forthcoming John Lennon documentary directed by Steven Soderbergh will feature AI-generated scenes. The director used AI to create images for sections where Lennon and Yoko Ono speak in abstract terms.
What happened
Approximately 10% of the film consists of AI-generated visuals. Soderbergh partnered with Meta to create these scenes, using the project to stress test the company's AI tools. The AI-generated content aims to enhance the audio, acting as metaphorical representations of the interview content. Soderbergh has defended the use of AI, stating that it's not intended to deceive or manipulate, but rather to be used like VFX or CGI. He also consulted with Sean Ono Lennon, who believed his father would have been interested in experimenting with the technology.