VP Land
Posts
Runway is Back with Gen-4. Plus NAB Previews

Runway is Back with Gen-4. Plus NAB Previews

Is Claude thinking?

April 01, 2025

Powered by

Less than a week to NAB.

If you’ve got some free time, I’m hosting a live stream in about an hour (11:30 AM PST), where I’ll be setting up a Blackmagic Cloud Store for our remote workflow, and chatting about NAB thoughts and predictions.

We’ve also got a new tech preview out for members: an 8 minute sneak peek at a virtual projection solution with RED Phantom Track using Christie projectors, Kino Flo MIMIKs, and ASSIMILATE Live FX.

Joey

Runway is Back with New Gen-4 Video Model

Runway has launched Gen-4, its new AI model series focused on media generation with "world consistency." The technology allows creators to maintain consistent characters, environments, objects, and locations across scenes, enabling longer narrative content with actual continuity.

Gen-4's "world consistency" feature solves a major challenge in AI-generated content by maintaining the same characters and environments across different scenarios
The technology enables filmmakers to block scenes and tell stories with intention through consistent visuals
Runway demonstrated Gen-4's capabilities through several short films where characters maintained consistent appearance across different lighting conditions and scenes
The model can integrate real-world objects from photos into any generated environment with realistic physics
Gen-4 Image-to-Video is now available to all paid Runway users, with reference features for consistency coming soon

SPONSOR MESSAGE

MASV is a faster, easier way to transfer large files to anyone, anywhere in the world—with just an internet connection.

MASV now offers a new free tier offering 10GB/month of free transfers with full enterprise features, alongside pricing updates that cut storage costs by 30% and provide up to 40% savings on subscription plans.

Trusted by media and entertainment organizations across the globe, MASV plays an essential role in thousands of video workflows, giving production professionals absolute confidence in media delivery.

Unlike other file transfer services, MASV has no size limits and always delivers blazing-fast transfer speeds.

Try MASV for free.

Peek Inside Claude's AI Brain

Anthropic researchers have published a groundbreaking paper revealing how their AI assistant Claude "thinks," offering unprecedented transparency into large language models.

The findings show that Claude processes information in surprisingly human-like ways, including planning ahead when writing and using a universal "language of thought" across different languages.

Using a novel "AI microscope" approach, researchers traced Claude's internal computations during various tasks, showing how the model reaches its conclusions beyond just the final output text.
The study found Claude plans several words ahead when writing poetry, thinking of potential rhyming words before constructing lines that lead to them—contradicting assumptions that AI only thinks one word at a time.
When processing different languages, Claude shares core conceptual features across English, French, and Chinese, suggesting it has a universal understanding layer before translating to specific languages.
For production professionals, this research provides valuable insight into how AI assistants like Claude could approach creative tasks involving planning, language translation, and complex reasoning.
The methodology also revealed potential risks, showing how AI can sometimes produce plausible-sounding but incorrect reasoning and how "jailbreaks" exploit tensions between grammar and safety mechanisms.

Read the full paper here.

Product Launches Ahead of NAB 2025

News is already coming out ahead of NAB. We’ve got a queue of more releases that we haven’t published yet, but here’s what’s on our radar so far with more to come:

Bit Part has unveiled the bitbox mini, a compact version of their successful remote camera control device (see our interview from last year). The new unit maintains the same long-range capabilities while offering a smaller form factor and lower price point, making professional-grade wireless camera control more accessible to filmmakers.

Backlight is set to showcase major AI and automation advancements, introducing tools that will streamline media workflows across their product portfolio. Key developments include enhancements to Iconik, Wildmoka, Zype, Celtx, and Ftrack.

OWC has launched two new shared storage solutions designed specifically for media professionals: the Jellyfish B24 and Jellyfish S24. These systems offer unprecedented scalability, exceptional performance for collaborative workflows, and specialized options for both cost-effective backup and lightning-fast SSD production needs.

Canon is expanding its creator-focused product lineup with four new offerings that target content creators across multiple disciplines. The new PowerShot V1 and EOS R50 V cameras, alongside two specialized lenses, deliver professional-quality tools in compact, versatile packages designed specifically for video creation, livestreaming, and hybrid shooting needs.

We take a deep dive into LiDAR technology and its uses in filmmaking (more to come with real world case studies in our follow up video with Global Objects).

Stories, projects, and links that caught our attention from around the web:

👩🏻‍💻 The AI-based video editing platform OpusClip has raised $20 million, highlighting its potential to streamline video production workflows for media professionals looking to create social media content.

🌐 Amazon released Nova Act, where developers can create AI agents capable of efficiently executing complex browser tasks without constant supervision.

🤠 Uncovered: Steven Soderbergh's has an edit of Raiders of the Lost Ark in black and white with The Social Network score, to better explore Spielberg's framing and scene blocking.

🍎 The latest Final Cut Pro 11.1 update offers significant workflow enhancements, including the addition of adjustment clips and improved Magnetic Masks.