Toys 'R' Us, the iconic toy retailer, has made headlines by creating a brand film using OpenAI's text-to-video tool, Sora. The film debuted at the 2024 Cannes Lions Festival and was produced in collaboration with Native Foreign, an Emmy-nominated agency that has alpha access to Sora. Toys 'R' Us claims to be the first brand to use this technology for a film.
The Origin of Toys 'R' Us is a reimagining of the retailer's history, featuring a young Charles Lazarus and his vision for transforming toy stores with the help of Geoffrey the Giraffe. The film was created almost entirely using text inputs and some corrective visual effects.
Sora, which has not yet been publicly released, can generate one-minute videos with multiple characters, specific types of motion, and detailed backgrounds. Experts believe this technology could disrupt the digital entertainment market.
The concept for the film was born after Kim Miller, CMO of Toys 'R' Us Creative studios, attended a brand storytelling group and wanted to do something fun and different for their next project. After Native Foreign became an early tester of Sora, they proposed joining forces to create the film.
The process involved creating text prompts for the scenes, which were then translated into videos by Sora. Some shots came together quickly, while others required more iterations to get the perfect dance between character movements and emotions. Human involvement was necessary throughout the process to ensure accurate reactions and timing.
Toys 'R' Us is currently exploring advertising opportunities for the film and may release a holiday iteration soon. OpenAI has not yet announced an official release date for Sora but rumors indicate it could launch later this summer.
Despite the excitement surrounding this new technology, some concerns have been raised about job loss in the creative industry. The use of AI-generated content is a sign of how far technology has come and where it could go, but human involvement will still be necessary to ensure accurate and engaging storytelling.