Kal Athannassov

OpenAI's new Sora video generator to require copyright holders to opt out, WSJ reports OpenAI is planning to release a new version of its Sora video generator that creates videos featuring copyrighted material, unless copyright holders opt out of having their work appear, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Ridiculous and appalling that Open Ai, amongst other GenAi companies, think they can dictate how THEY use OUR works.

No, Open Ai, it should not be authors and copyright holders opting out of your exploitative models. It should be you, Open Ai, asking authors and copyright holders to opt IN.

Thank you!🙏🙏

Welcome back to the #LollipopGang !

Today we are meeting Angel - the second in comman of the LG. Wisdom and experience are his currency, and most often Angel would rather use those than have to get his hands dirty. He values comfort and a measured approach - second only to a good nap.

Key Art for one of the book projects I’be been developing #BloodGuts&Tears - Artwork from last year.

For the time being BGT has been pushed to the back of the que after #LollipopGang and one other project I’m really really excited about.

Welcome to #TheLolipopGang . Meet Kirin - the brawler of the group. Joined years ago after rich corporations took over her family’s business and left them with nothing. She joined up with the Lollipops to strike back against the rich and powerful who took everything from her.

Welcome back to #TheLollipopGang !

Jax and Baby Face have a father daughter relationship. Taking care of BF now and making sure he is by her side 24/7 is his way of atoning for his past life. Being with the Lolipop Gang is their way of sticking it to the corporations who made their lives hell.

Thank you Jeong🙏🙏

Fucking stop.

Welcome back to #TheLollipopGang !

Jax and Baby Face have a father daughter relationship. Taking care of BF now and making sure he is by her side 24/7 is his way of atoning for his past life. Being with the Lolipop Gang is their way of sticking it to the corporations who made their lives hell.

I challenge all conventions to echo GalaxyCon's new policy. Each Artist Alley or booth spot granted to a genAI slop peddler is being being taken away from a working artist. And smart con-runners know it's artists who make them what they are.

Class Sign Ups are now closed!
Thank you to everyone who signed up, liked, shared, and provided encouragement!

Excited for a new batch of students to teach and learn from. If you are interested in taking one of my classes in the future, I will be setting up more in 2026.

Hope to see you in class!

Meta to launch California super PAC focused on AI The tech giant plans to spend tens of millions backing candidates in state races.

Look at what Meta has to do to offset the power of organized labor and creatives!

So want to continue fighting against Meta’s Super Pac? One thing you could do is send letters to Californian legislators to pass AB-412, a pivotal transparency bill! Do so here👇

actionnetwork.org/petitions/le...

This Saturday signs ups for my Fall Class officially end!

There are now only 2 slots left in Feedback, so hurry if you want to take my class. Spectator still has plenty of room!

Hope to see you in class

This is the final week to sign up for my Fall class!

If you’re interested in a 9 week online course where I break down my process from start to finish then don’t wait too much longer!

Only a few spots left in Feedback! And plenty of spots still in Spectator Tier.

The Netflix doc about them is a crazy ride👌 Also they did the them song for our show on Netflix “Jentry Chau vs The Underworld” so we are all Eyekons now

Love Character Design and want to get better at it?

Consider enrolling in my Fall Course! Signs ups are live until Aug30th.

Only a few spots left in my Feedback Tier! Plenty of spots still in Spectator Tier.

Hope to see you in class!

Nearly all Feedback Tier Slots have been filled while Spectator still has plenty of room.

If you’re interested in growing your character design skills, please consider signing up for my Fall Character Design Class.

Check it out!

1/7 This is Showrunner AI, a startup that just a few weeks ago got Amazon funding to become the “Netflix of AI” as reported by Forbes, Business Insider, NBC News and so on.

Frustratingly, no news outlets asked or researched the data used by Showrunner. Well after some digging here’s it is👇

AI industry horrified to face largest copyright class action ever certified Copyright class actions could financially ruin AI industry, trade groups say.

Oh the crocodile tears of thieves who might face legal consequences.

“But our company might go down!”

Well you shouldn’t have felt entitled to profit off works you do not own, and built your entire business off this racket 🤷🏻‍♀️

Also missing from this article-

arstechnica.com/tech-policy/...

If you see this post a ghost👻

Only one more slot left in my Feedback Tier! If you’re looking to join my live class with direct feedback from myself then don’t wait!

Plenty of spots in Spectator still.

Hope to see you in class!

WE'RE WINNING

Amazon Invests in ‘Netflix of AI’ Start-Up Fable, Which Launches Showrunner: A Tool for User-Directed TV Shows Amazon has invested in Fable, a start-up whose 'Netflix of AI' Showunner gen-AI tool lets users create scenes or entire episodes of a TV show.

I’m seeing grand announcements of Amazon investing in an AI content slop platform.

But nowhere do I see key questions answered like what’s the foundational models? How are these models trained and on what data is it trained upon?

News needs to do better

variety.com/2025/digital...

Only 3 slots left in the Feedback Tier for my Fall Class! Act fast if interested!

Artists & Creatives MUST be included in White House discussions on Generative A​​.I. Can you spare a minute to help this campaign?

Just want to boost this petition one more time. These things actually help organizers gain support in the gov. Please sign and share!

chng.it/c4JZGQgJmw

Hope to see you in class!

Any shares are welcome to help spread the word to all those that might be interested in this.

Thanks a million! :)

A little about me and what my past students had to say about my class!

Hi all!

Sign ups for my Fall Class are now live!

The class starts September 10th every Wednesday at 7pm -11pm PST.

There are 2 Tiers - a Feedback Tier & a Spectator Tier.

Feedback Tier is live with direct feedback. Spectator Tier is pre-recorded only.

Hope to see you in class!
-Kal

Let’s Be Clear: Artists & Creators Must Have Transparency NOW! Every single day we don’t have transparency, the value of copyright loses ground and the harms inflicted to creative industries grow. California has always been on the forefront of policies that can ...

Friends, we got a call to action 👇

We have the right to know when and how our creative works are used, especially when it comes to GenAi!

This is why we need regulation like California’s Ai Copyright Transparency Act #AB-412 !

If you agree, especially if in CA, please sign & share this petition!