AI creativity put on blast as Netflix requires pre-approval for its use in productions

Netflix has issued comprehensive guidelines for its production partners on how they can and cannot use generative AI in filmmaking, requiring advance notification for all AI usage. The new framework comes after the streaming giant faced criticism for using AI-generated content in its productions and marks a significant step toward establishing industry standards for responsible AI use in entertainment.

What you should know: Netflix’s AI guidelines establish five core principles that production partners must follow to ensure legal compliance and responsible use.

• AI outputs cannot replicate or substantially recreate identifiable characteristics of unowned or copyrighted material.
• Generative tools must not store, reuse, or train on production data inputs or outputs.
• AI tools should be used in enterprise-secured environments when possible to safeguard inputs.
• Generated material must be temporary and not part of final deliverables.
• AI cannot be used to replace or generate new talent performances or union-covered work without consent.

The approval process: Production partners must notify Netflix of any AI use, with certain applications requiring written approval before implementation.

• Situations requiring written approval include using Netflix’s proprietary data, using other artists’ work to train AI models, creating main characters or key visual elements with AI, and using prompts that reference copyrighted materials or public figures.
• Partners must also get approval before using AI to create digital performers, voices, or likenesses of real talent.
• All AI usage must be disclosed to Netflix contacts in advance, regardless of complexity.

The no-go zone: Netflix has established strict prohibitions on certain AI applications to maintain audience trust and prevent misinformation.

• Production partners are barred from using generative AI to recreate footage of real events, people, or statements.
• “Audiences should be able to trust what they see and hear on screen. GenAI (if used without care) can blur the line between fiction and reality or unintentionally mislead viewers,” Netflix explained.

Why this matters: The guidelines represent Netflix’s attempt to balance cost-cutting benefits with ethical concerns after facing backlash for AI use in previous productions.

• Netflix was criticized last year for using AI images in its true crime documentary “What Jennifer Did.”
• The company has embraced AI for efficiency gains, with co-CEO Ted Sarandos noting that AI-generated footage for “The Eternaut” was completed “10x faster than it could have been completed with traditional VFX tools and workflows.”

Industry perspective: Media leaders see AI as a productivity multiplier that can accelerate creative workflows while freeing up artists for other work.

• “Generative AI can double the speed to completion on a given shot, so your cadence is faster and your throughput cycle is faster, and artists get to move on and do other cool things,” said Avatar director James Cameron earlier this year.