Eline van der Velden did not intend to cause a worldwide backlash at the Zurich Film Festival. During a panel discussion, she casually mentioned that she would soon announce which agency would represent Tilly Norwood, an AI character created by her company Particle 6.
That statement, combined with Tilly’s innocent image, evoked an outpouring of anger, anxiety, fascination, and desire. Maureen Dowd ushered in the collapse of civilization. Economist Tyler Cowen declared Tilly his favorite actress and speculated about her virginity.
“The reaction to it is the story,” says Bryn Muser, founder of Los Angeles-based AI film studio Asteria. “This shows that our industry is at a very stressful time.”
In Hollywood, Tilly crystallized fears about AI in a way not seen since the 2023 strikes. Over the past two years, video AI models have gotten better and better, including the just-released Sora 2. Dozens of “AI studios” have sprung up, with small teams of creators competing to be the first AI hit.
Particle6 was founded in 2015 but has transformed into an AI production company over the past three years.
Founder and CEO Van der Velden started his career as a sketch comedian and YouTube creator. The theme of her work is human discomfort. As “Miss Holland,” she was calling out unsuspecting people like Sacha Baron Cohen’s Ali G. In one “social experiment” video, she asked people on the street to give her a sensual kiss. Many people were happy to oblige. Then she spit into the glass and invited them to drink from it. they revolted.
Van der Velden has since moved behind the camera, in part because she was fed up with the hate she received when her videos went viral.
In an interview in April, Van der Velden said he was working on a “factual entertainment” program for a British broadcaster that uses AI to talk about AI.
“For me, creating Tilly was an act of imagination and craftsmanship,” van der Velden wrote on Instagram in response to the uproar. “A lot of my work has always been about holding up a mirror to society through satire, and this is no exception.”
Through a spokesperson, Van der Velden declined to comment on the matter.
If Tilly Norwood’s goal is to make people uncomfortable, then mission accomplished. But there’s nothing particularly new about composite characters. Look no further than Michela, the virtual influencer who was “signed” to CAA in 2020. But the idea of an agency signing an “AI actress” in 2025 felt like a betrayal to many.
Agents are supposed to side with the creatives against the studios, so it felt like the line of defense was broken.
“I think that’s exactly what got people going,” says Tricia Biggio, co-founder and CEO of AI animation studio Invisible Universe. “It feels outrageous for an agent to represent an AI-generated character as a client.”
Major studios are interested in using AI to enhance visual effects and speed up pre-production, but they’re in no rush to cast AI talent. Under the SAG-AFTRA contract, studios must notify unions if they plan to use synthetic characters. No one has.
“Tilly Norwood isn’t going to be in a Hollywood movie anytime soon,” Mooser says. “I tell people there’s no guy in the back room of every studio in town chomping on a cigar saying, ‘I wish I could make this for a dollar.'”
Creative breakthroughs are more likely to come from small businesses experimenting with off-the-shelf tools. However, there is still a huge gap between what these tools can offer and what Hollywood is producing. And even short-form AI videos require a lot of creative effort.
“The models aren’t very good yet,” says Rachel Joy Victor, co-founder of AI consultancy FBRC.AI. “There’s a lot of new talent emerging that can fill that gap, and that talent is human talent.”
The appeal for artists using AI is the addition it adds to their creative palette.
“This is a way for me to get stories out faster,” says Alex Naghavi, an AI artist in the Runway Creative Partner Program. “I don’t know if there’s a clear line. What’s important to me is originality. I don’t want to make something Pixar-y or Disney-y. I want to make something that feels fresh.”
Tilly’s announcement shocked many in the AI content community as intentionally provocative. Invisible Universe has a character named Qai Qai who makes music videos and has a record deal. And civilization is established.
“No one was mad about it,” Biggio said. “I don’t think everyone understands that this is probably a stunt for hype purposes. And B), this is not a threat to their livelihoods as they think.”
There it is. ”
Alex Littman contributed to this article.
