AI is beginning to change the economics of advertising production. Locations once ruled out by budgets, expensive stunts and larger visual worlds can increasingly be created or augmented using AI. But as adoption grows, production houses are confronting a less convenient reality: credible AI filmmaking can require extensive testing, iteration and creative direction rather than simply a few prompts.

Against this backdrop, Reema Asrani, AI creative producer, and Samrat Parmar, AI head and creative director, have recently launched Aimighty, an AI-first film production studio working across fully AI-generated and hybrid films. It operates as a separate entity while working closely with ZigZag Films, co-founded by Anupama Ahluwalia, producer and Abhijit Sudhakar, creative lead.

Client receptiveness may be growing, but questions around likeness rights, commercial licences and data remain. The industry is also figuring out how to recognise AI work creatively, with Kyoorius and Good Ads Matter introducing separate AI categories this year.

Manifest spoke with Ahluwalia, Sudhakar, Parmar and Asrani about building Aimighty, production economics, client adoption, legal safeguards, Cannes and why craft will determine whether AI filmmaking enters the mainstream.

Edited excerpts:

How does Aimighty fit within ZigZag Films, and where do you see the opportunity?

Abhijit Sudhakar (AS): I wouldn’t call Aimighty a ZigZag property or arm. We like to think of it independently, as an entity in its own right, which Samrat and Reema are leading.

We see a lot of promise in what AI can deliver. Recently, we did a hybrid shoot with AI and production, which allowed us to do much more within the budget without compromising quality. Earlier, budget could constrain where a film opened or whether we could travel somewhere. Now, even within a certain budget, creatives can think more freely and approach something knowing it can be achieved.

How are clients responding to AI-led production?

Reema Asrani (RA): We are collaborating with agencies and clients earlier in the process and chalking out whether an idea is possible very early in pre-production.

If you had asked me six to eight months ago, clients were very sceptical. Now, with tools and realism getting better, they are open to exploring AI and hybrid production. Hybrid is unavoidable; it is what the future looks like at this point.

In the latest Flipkart film, for example, we tried stunts we otherwise couldn't have done. Clients are still sceptical, so we test samples for realism before production and give them a sense of the quality we can achieve.

Aimighty's latest work for Flipkart 

Samrat Parmar (SP): If an AI film cannot look real and cannot make you feel anything, there’s no novelty in it. Whatever we do has to be on par with how it would have looked if you had shot it.

People often look at AI work with an 'AI eye' and try to catch where the AI is. The challenge is making them believe it is real. The novelty isn’t necessarily flashy, ultra-stylised sci-fi. It’s making something look as real as we can and, most importantly, making you feel something.

Is there still a misconception that AI makes production quicker and easier?

SP: A lot of brands think, ‘It’s a one-minute film, I should be able to deliver it tomorrow,’ which isn’t true if one wants quality.

Every frame and still has to be designed, and one needs to see if it incorporates the look wanted, and then there’s another whole process of pre-production. The production part is cut down, while post-production almost remains the same. We mostly use AI for visuals because we need human intervention to control the film.

RA: It doesn’t work with the press of a button or a couple of prompts. Traditionally, a live-action film might get 10–15 days from pre-production to post-production. For us, it could take longer because of constant iterations and creative direction.

India had a relatively subdued Cannes showing this year. What held the work back?

Anupama Ahluwalia (AA): I didn’t see anything from India this time that was shattering norms or breaking glass ceilings. If anything, it felt a little like, ‘Let’s play it safe.’

I also think clients are not investing anymore in making ideas bigger. Given the macro environment, everybody wants to be within boundaries and not spend too much.

It’s a culmination of many things. Paradigms change all the time. What worked a few years ago will not work now. AI is here, humour changes, and there are cultural shifts.

Should AI films eventually compete alongside traditional films at Cannes?

AA: AI is here to stay, whether one is a filmmaking purist or not. It will probably be pure AI films first, and then gradually hybrids will move into the wider scene.

RA: For pure AI films, there should be a separate category. But for us, the win would be being nominated in the same categories because we are using AI as a creative tool. The biggest win will be when AI is treated more like CGI rather than as a separate category.

What is holding some brands back when it comes to AI?

SP: Most of the issues come from legal teams, particularly around faces. That’s why, even in Aimighty productions, we cast people.

RA: Speaking about casting and to curb the legal issues, we take facial scans and signed consent, with clauses specifying that the person’s photo will only be used for that particular film, period and brand. We also use commercially viable licences and have enterprise plans in place.

AA: The licences we use also come with guarantees that clients’ data will not be used for training. That is critical for brands and agencies.

SP: Our plans guarantee that whatever data clients provide will never be used for training. For me, that assurance is critical to giving brands confidence in using AI.

Lastly, what does success look like for Aimighty?

SP: There is no playbook. Every project has a different workflow, so testing becomes very important. We’re still learning every day. AI isn’t going to replace filmmakers or filmmaking. It’s another tool, and we would like to remain creative-first rather than technology-first.

RA: Craft is non-negotiable. If you give AI to someone without the background, you see slop being created. Give the tool to somebody with good craft, and good things will come out.

AA: A big benchmark will be how integrated Aimighty becomes into mainstream film discussions and forums, rather than only conversations about AI. From a business perspective, it will be how many more clients say, “I’m making films traditionally, but now I also want to make films purely in AI or as a hybrid.”

AS: Success would be people seeing Aimighty's process as a legitimate way of approaching production.