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Earlier this week I wrote about Star City, which is the latest sci-fi series to hit Apple TV, and which is created by the same team behind juggernaut For All Mankind — although the team insists that it's not "a companion piece."
Even so, there are still a lot of similarities. Both have clear time jumps, both are set in alternative versions of the past, and both obviously have a link to space travel, with both having a particular focus on the Soviet Union's involvement in the space race.
While Star City is set to tell its story with a 1970s spy-thriller feel, creators Ben Nedivi and Matt Wolpert explained that much of what they learned about filming space — or at least making it look real — came from their experience on For All Mankind.
So does this include the use of AI and deepfakes that the original sci-fi series has become so known for? It's unclear... but I have a hunch that as episodes progress over the next few months, the answer will be yes.
'The challenge is always making it feel real'
"We became experts because of For All Mankind," Nevidi beings. "Learning it was difficult during those first few seasons. But now I feel like you become the experts in how to capture space and zero G. The challenge always is making it feel real, like everything on the show.
"The authenticity of the sets on the ground in Russia were amazing. We wanted to make sure you didn't suddenly feel like you were in a different show when you were in space. I think capturing that in a way that is actually different to For All Mankind, was fascinating."
Wolpert adds, "These ships the Russians sent up were purposeful, but the resources they had were much more limited. It's almost like sending these tin cans up into space. Where the Americans were so careful about everything, The Soviets kind of said, 'we have to make it happen.'
"So the fact that the ingenuity involved in this, and then the risks you see these cosmonauts take in the show in these first few episodes, were very accurate to what was really happening."
What the pair has skipped over here is the use of deepfake technology in For All Mankind's visual effects to utilize AI-driven lip-syncing and facial mapping. This altered real historical footage and impersonators' faces so that historical figures deliver alternate-history speeches.
Given the series is socio-politically driven and has huge time jumps, historical reference points like this are to be expected. Star City employs exactly the same tactic, featuring televised political broadcasts during changing eras. Put two and two together, and we can assume the team also utilized deepfakes in the same way to create this.
However, this isn't confirmed at the time of writing, and we're likely to know more as episodes are released. Star City begins on May 29 with its first two episodes, followed by weekly releases every Friday until July 10.
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