Large parts of the dialogue in the film "Brutalisten" are in Hungarian, a language that actors Adrien Brody and Felicity Jones had to learn to master before filming.
But not well enough. So the filmmakers used AI to ensure that the Hungarian pronunciation was perfect, revealed editor Dávid Jancsó in a recent interview.
It's a very unique language. We trained them and they did a fantastic job, but we also wanted it to sound perfect, so that not even native Hungarians would notice anything, says Jancsó to tech magazine Red Shark News.
The criticism has not been slow to emerge. Several users on social media think that the move is equivalent to cheating and that the film should not be allowed to compete for an Oscar. The debate comes at the same time as many in Hollywood are worried that AI technology will take over a large part of the jobs in the film industry.
"Brutalisten" is one of the favorites ahead of the Oscars in March. The nominations will be presented on Thursday.
The film's director Brady Corbet defends the use of AI and says it was only done to make the film's dialogue feel more authentic.
"The goal was for Adrien's and Felicity's performances to feel authentic even in another language, not to replace or distort their efforts. And it was done with the greatest respect for professionalism", says Corbet in a statement to Variety.
