«David Fincher: from music videos to the use of AI in the film industry»
20 february 2025 в 17:37
Director David Fincher began his career as a highly acclaimed director of music videos, creating some of the most iconic videos of the MTV era for the most popular artists of the time, including everyone from Aerosmith and Stevie Wonder to George Michael and Madonna. Thus, Fincher’s work in this medium serves as a hyper-specific embodiment of the tone, palette, and influence that such works had in their heyday.
Shortly after, Fincher transitioned to directing feature films, where (after initial difficulties in the form of production problems that plagued his version of the film «Alien 3» in 1992) he became one of the most well-known and highly regarded directors in the industry.
From 1995 to 2014, Fincher directed a total of nine feature films, and these films (including such works as «Seven», - «Fight Club», - «Zodiac», - «The Curious Case of Benjamin Button», - «The Social Network», - and «Gone Girl») became some of the most influential and innovative works of the past century. In 2013, Fincher became one of the first well-known directors to collaborate with the then newly launched streaming service Netflix, producing and directing several episodes of the series «House of Cards». Since then, Fincher has worked exclusively with this huge streaming service, creating numerous television and film projects for it.
All of this speaks to the fact that David Fincher has always been at the forefront of cultural changes in the film industry, in the medium, and its influence on the spirit of the times. Therefore, it is particularly important to note that in 2025, David Fincher embraced artificial intelligence in filmmaking, at least to some extent, and this seems indicative of what will happen in the coming years. As artificial intelligence has advanced in its technical and user-friendly capabilities over the past few years, it is being integrated into an increasingly astonishing number of areas. From AI text generators to emotional AI companions, users around the world are using artificial intelligence for a variety of purposes. And in Hollywood, it is becoming increasingly clear that the role of artificial intelligence in the art of filmmaking will only continue to expand.
It is important to note the context in which the renowned and respected director David Fincher has used artificial intelligence so far. Unlike other efforts that have tried to use technology to create entire scenes and sequences of a film using only AI generation tools, Fincher’s use of artificial intelligence has been strictly limited to restoration efforts. For the recent restoration and IMAX release of his 1995 film «Seven», - Fincher and his team used AI tools to assist in restoring frames that had deteriorated over the years. While the meticulous director switched to digital shooting with his 2007 film «Zodiac» and never looked back, «Seven» was shot on traditional, tactile film, making its restoration in 8K format a more laborious process. Speaking about a specific scene where the focus was slightly blurred to the director’s taste, he said: «We were able to use artificial intelligence, create masks, and pull out the performance that was in the back seat, and recreate it. It’s still blurry, but not as terrible as it was. My real attitude is that I don’t want to change it. I want it to be like the premiere day, 1995, but in the perfect version of it».
With the help of artificial intelligence tools, Fincher was able to more succinctly and effectively restore the film «Seven» to the quality it would have had in 1995, using innovative technology to achieve a more classic and traditional standard. This is unique in terms of the use of artificial intelligence in Hollywood, but certainly not the only one. For example, director Peter Jackson (also a pioneering creator who helped set many new standards in the industry with his spectacular blockbusters, such as the «Lord of the Rings» films) used artificial intelligence technology as a means to achieve a similar goal in creating his documentary series about The Beatles, «Get Back». With the help of artificial intelligence, Jackson and his team were able to
Shortly after, Fincher transitioned to directing feature films, where (after initial difficulties in the form of production problems that plagued his version of the film «Alien 3» in 1992) he became one of the most well-known and highly regarded directors in the industry.
From 1995 to 2014, Fincher directed a total of nine feature films, and these films (including such works as «Seven», - «Fight Club», - «Zodiac», - «The Curious Case of Benjamin Button», - «The Social Network», - and «Gone Girl») became some of the most influential and innovative works of the past century. In 2013, Fincher became one of the first well-known directors to collaborate with the then newly launched streaming service Netflix, producing and directing several episodes of the series «House of Cards». Since then, Fincher has worked exclusively with this huge streaming service, creating numerous television and film projects for it.
All of this speaks to the fact that David Fincher has always been at the forefront of cultural changes in the film industry, in the medium, and its influence on the spirit of the times. Therefore, it is particularly important to note that in 2025, David Fincher embraced artificial intelligence in filmmaking, at least to some extent, and this seems indicative of what will happen in the coming years. As artificial intelligence has advanced in its technical and user-friendly capabilities over the past few years, it is being integrated into an increasingly astonishing number of areas. From AI text generators to emotional AI companions, users around the world are using artificial intelligence for a variety of purposes. And in Hollywood, it is becoming increasingly clear that the role of artificial intelligence in the art of filmmaking will only continue to expand.
It is important to note the context in which the renowned and respected director David Fincher has used artificial intelligence so far. Unlike other efforts that have tried to use technology to create entire scenes and sequences of a film using only AI generation tools, Fincher’s use of artificial intelligence has been strictly limited to restoration efforts. For the recent restoration and IMAX release of his 1995 film «Seven», - Fincher and his team used AI tools to assist in restoring frames that had deteriorated over the years. While the meticulous director switched to digital shooting with his 2007 film «Zodiac» and never looked back, «Seven» was shot on traditional, tactile film, making its restoration in 8K format a more laborious process. Speaking about a specific scene where the focus was slightly blurred to the director’s taste, he said: «We were able to use artificial intelligence, create masks, and pull out the performance that was in the back seat, and recreate it. It’s still blurry, but not as terrible as it was. My real attitude is that I don’t want to change it. I want it to be like the premiere day, 1995, but in the perfect version of it».
With the help of artificial intelligence tools, Fincher was able to more succinctly and effectively restore the film «Seven» to the quality it would have had in 1995, using innovative technology to achieve a more classic and traditional standard. This is unique in terms of the use of artificial intelligence in Hollywood, but certainly not the only one. For example, director Peter Jackson (also a pioneering creator who helped set many new standards in the industry with his spectacular blockbusters, such as the «Lord of the Rings» films) used artificial intelligence technology as a means to achieve a similar goal in creating his documentary series about The Beatles, «Get Back». With the help of artificial intelligence, Jackson and his team were able to
© Puhova Marina
