CyberLink's new AI editor turns videos into live paintings

CyberLink PowerDirector AI plugin

CyberLink has launched a new plugin for its PowerDirector 16 video editor that transform videos into moving works of art.

The CyberLink AI Style Plugin uses artificial and deep learning to adapt videos to the style of world-renowned painters, frame by frame. Unlike other video editors, which just apply a filter on top of a clip, the AI Style Plugin determines where a human painter would place brushstrokes and which color tones they might use.

The overall effect is similar to the recent film Loving Vincent – an animated biographical drama made up of 65,000 paintings by a team of 125 artists.

The (almost) human touch

There are two style packs available: one dedicated to the works of Vincent van Gogh, and another that recreates the styles of impressionist artists Claude Monet and Édouard Manet.

The software runs locally on your PC without the need for a fast internet connection, and you can export your moving paintings in resolutions up to 4K.

"Through the power of artificial intelligence and deep learning, we have been able to train our AI engine to possess an almost human-like understanding of the artistic process," said Dr Jau Huang, CEO of CyberLink.

"With the CyberLink AI Style Plugin we’ve leveraged this research to deliver a quality, cutting-edge product for our PowerDirector users, helping them expand their creative horizons to places that were once unimaginable."

CyberLink plans to release one or two new packs each quarter, so keep an eye out for more styles based on other artists coming soon.

Cat Ellis

Cat is the editor of TechRadar's sister site Advnture. She’s a UK Athletics qualified run leader, and in her spare time enjoys nothing more than lacing up her shoes and hitting the roads and trails (the muddier, the better)