Spain Dives Into AI-Generated Movies While Hollywood Battles Over Its Soul

Spain is beginning to integrate artificial intelligence into its film and television industries, attempting to position itself as a pioneer in both the creation and regulation of AI content.

The shift includes notable projects like “The Great Reset,” an AI-generated feature film presented at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2025.

The sci-fi thriller, directed by Daniel H. Torrado, uses AI for image synthesis, animation, and post-production, eliminating the need for on-screen actors or physical locations.

Produced by Virtual World Pictures, Canary Film Factory, and EPC Media, the film follows an AI from a renegade hacker’s mind that’s planning to destroy humanity, with the protagonist racing to prevent global collapse.

Despite its technological innovations, human involvement remains crucial, with the script, artistic direction, and narrative supervised by a creative team led by Torrado. Real actors served as references for interpretation and dubbing in key scenes.

“AI allowed us to simulate complex decisions early on and experiment without the budgetary risk that often paralyzes many independent creators,” Torrado told the Hollywood Reporter. “Human oversight was constant. Every artistic, narrative, and emotional decision went through my hands. AI was a powerful tool, not a substitute for the creator.”

Spain’s push into AI-generated content comes amid heated global debates about AI’s role in filmmaking—and all art in general.

The controversy centers on concerns about authenticity, transparency, and ethical use, with audiences and creators worried about AI-generated content being mistaken for human work.

Recent examples illustrate those tensions.

The film “The Brutalist” faced significant backlash after its editor revealed that AI was used to enhance the Hungarian accents of lead actors Adrien Brody and Felicity Jones.

Director Brady Corbet defended the use, stating it was a meticulous, manual process, but the controversy highlighted sensitivity around AI’s role in performances.

Even huge studios from Lucasfilm to Marvel Studios have been in the bullseye, from small things like using AI to create posters to more influential decisions like incorporating AI into the final creation.

Marvel using AI is a slap in the face to the decades of artist who made the brand what it is https://t.co/D3wjVqOf5r

— Film Colossus (@FilmColossus) February 4, 2025

Spain’s boost for an AI-friendly industry

In March 2025, Spain approved a draft law to regulate AI, aligning with the European Union’s AI Act.

This law focuses on ethical, inclusive, and beneficial use, including strict labeling requirements for AI-generated content and significant fines for non-compliance.

Mislabeling AI content could result in penalties up to €35 million (US$39.3 million), aiming to ensure transparency and prevent misuse like deepfakes.

But Hollywood has already begun incorporating Spanish AI technologies into mainstream productions.

A case in point is the film “Here,” directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Tom Hanks and Robin Wright, which utilized AI tools to enhance visual effects.

VFX supervisor Kevin Baillie recently revealed that the team used an AI-powered upscaler called Magnific for numerous scenes in the film.

“Magnific was used to enhance 20+ scenes in here,” Baillie said in an interview shared by Javier Lopez, Magnific’s co-founder.

⚡ Magnific on the big screen!

I CAN FINALLY TALK ABOUT THIS!

The VFX team of Here (directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Robin Wright & Tom Hanks) used Magnific for their FX 🤯

To break it all down (+more), I interviewed VFX supervisor Kevin Baillie! 🧵👇 pic.twitter.com/EVhZCP0jlh

— Javi Lopez ⛩️ (@javilopen) February 18, 2025

Baillie explained how the tool transformed their workflow: “Instead of spending 20% of the time focusing on the creative aspects of a shot and 80% on the details, Magnific helped us spend 20% on the details and 80% on the creativity! It’s putting what artists do best at the forefront, which I absolutely love.”

The film also employed face-swapping technology for de-aging, with 53 minutes of complete face replacement to bring Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, and other actors back to their younger years.

The team used real-time face swap models during filming, allowing actors and crew to see the de-aged versions immediately on set.

Besides generative upscaling and filtering, there are already a lot of interesting ideas being developed in the Spanish industry.

Speaking with Decrypt, Freepik CEO Joaquin Cuenca explained that beyond simple (and uncontrolled) AI generations, they are working on true workflows and AI-powered video editing suites.

“We are working on video editors,” he told Decrypt. “Today, you can generate small clips, but we are working on something that allows users to compile them on-site, add audio, and do all the composition to end up with a fully functional long clip.”

Spain’s television sector shows signs of exploration, though less documented than film.

From using generative AI in text and charts to leveraging AI tools to enhance the cataloging of its historical archive, TV stations are no strangers to adapting their workflows to incorporate AI.

And there have been some performative experiments with purely generative video among enthusiasts—at least on a short scale, non professional level.

One example is the experimental news show “Telediario” set in the year 2088, created by the Human XR Lab at the Universidad del Atlántico Medio.

Telediario hecho 100% con Inteligencia Artificial 🚨

Las Canteras 2088, Islas Canarias, España 🇪🇸🇮🇨 pic.twitter.com/d0iua67zpk

— Pablo Prompt (@pabloprompt) May 12, 2025

The short video is part of a virtual reality experience at the Museo Élder in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.

While not intended as commercial content, it reflects Spain’s growing appetite for innovation in pursuit of a more creative future.

“Artificial intelligence doesn’t replace artistic vision or human creativity,” Torrado said earlier this year. “[It] allows filmmakers to focus on what truly matters: telling stories that move and connect with the audience.”

Edited by Sebastian Sinclair and Andrew Hayward

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