Stillray

Stillray (스틸레이) is a Korean science-fiction action feature of about 90 minutes, rated 12+, made with generative AI from planning through post-production. It was produced by Raon Company Plus and Ainos Studio and directed by Seol Woo-in. It had its press and blind screening on 7 September 2026, and a nationwide theatrical release in Korea was set for October 2026. Reports differ on the day: early coverage gave 14 October, while Dailian and Specialtimes, both on 7 October, say 21 October.

The makers say it contains no live-action footage and no conventional CG, and that it is not a hybrid but was generated end to end with AI. The tools named are Seedance (Seedance 2.0 in one report), Google Veo and Kling. Each generated shot ran at most about 15 seconds, and roughly 13,000 clips were edited together out of tens of thousands of outputs. The production took about six months. Actors and voice actors were recorded for dialogue and lip-synced, with AI voices used for only some roles, and eight AI artists worked on it. Seol Woo-in calls the mix of traditional production and AI "AFX". Tool updates during the work forced retesting, and a new version arrived when the film was about 90% done, so earlier scenes look lower in quality than later ones. The team chose not to patch weak shots with CG.

Seol Woo-in is an actor who also works as a director. A dancer and stage actor before, Seol says the focus was on the story and the actors' emotions, designing small expressions such as breathing and blinking and then directing the AI output by hand. Studio head Ham Seul-gi of Ainos Studio led the production, with Kang Tae-kyung and Oh Se-eun as team leaders and Won Kyung-hye as assistant director. The budget was under one billion won, with 500 to 600 million won going on AI tools, and the Seoul Film Commission provided office space.

The film was shown at CGV Yongsan I'Park Mall followed by an insight talk with Ha Jung-woo, vice chair of the National AI Strategy Committee, who said he was surprised by it and called it impressive. He also said a long AI film needs its own labelling standard. Oh Se-eun raised the question of outputs resembling existing people or works, and Seol Woo-in called uncertainty over overseas tools' updates and credit policies the team's biggest challenge. The trailer on YouTube had 7,365 views and two MTN STAR videos about the film 8,700 and 4,200, as read on 7 October 2026.

Reviewers praised the lead's look and voice, the robot and suit designs and the scale of the visuals, and some found human faces hard to tell from live action. They criticised unnatural movement, uneven image quality, dialogue rhythm, a familiar story and a light score; Dailian said the novelty of AI production alone does not justify a ticket. Ham Seul-gi framed the release as setting a precedent. Press and the makers call it the first Korean 90-minute AI feature. The Korea JoongAng Daily notes it is longer than the earlier AI features I'm Popo and Man in Hanbok, which drew 781 and 640 admissions and left theatres within two weeks.