AI gives Hungarian accents a spotlight in The Brutalist — And it’s just the beginning
Artificial intelligence (AI) is making waves in the film industry, and the recent release of The Brutalist is the perfect example of how it can be used within the industry. The movie received favorable reviews from audiences, but there was one aspect that caught the attention of some. It emerged that AI had been used in quite a culturally significant way, in reproducing authentic Hungarian accents for characters, a sign of how this new technology continues to impact the entertainment sector.
The Power of AI across Entertainment
As AI becomes more deeply integrated into daily life, examples of the use of the technology across industries are becoming more prevalent. Across the entertainment sector, AI’s ability to understand our preferences is changing consumer experience. For example, in the iGaming sector, individuals who play slot games on Paddy Power will now be introduced to intelligent search bars. Not only do they respond to keywords, but they can also anticipate what users may want before they have finished typing. Powered by natural language processing and behavior analysis, this makes navigation faster and is being used across a range of sectors, whether it be in entertainment, online shopping or customer service. By understanding our preferences, AI can personalize the digital experience. Changes such as these are appearing across the industry, and now even our viewing experiences are changing.
Bringing Languages to Life
The Brutalist follows the life of a Hungarian-Jewish architect who immigrated to the US after World War II and was released to audiences in the US in December 2024 and much of its emotion and historical significance is connected to the Hungarian language and culture. However, the Hungarian language has been argued as one of the ‘hardest’ languages to learn. With this in mind, filmmakers decided that AI could be a useful tool to recreate Hungarian accents in the most authentic way possible. By using speech pattern databases and voice training, the actors voices were tweaked so that they sounded as natural as possible when it came to the intricacies of speaking the Hungarian language. It is a landmark moment for the use of AI in film and is just a starting point regarding its possibilities.
How It Worked
The use of the technology has raised concerns about creativity in the industry, especially when it came to handing out awards for performances that were arguably improved with the technology. However, director Brady Corbet contends that using AI was as a creative tool, referencing how difficult Hungarian is to learn and pronounce correctly. Working with Respeecher, a company known for its AI voice work, the work done by the principal actors was merged with Hungarian spoken by native speakers, a type of modification that has been argued to bring more realism to the movie.
There is no doubt that The Brutalist offers a glimpse into the future. In this case, the film producers will argue that their use of AI has preserved the cultural identity behind the movie while improving the storytelling, as well as improving the production process. With the growth of AI use across the entertainment sector it’s no surprise this is being seen in movies, though how this use of AI will affect the sector in the future remains to be seen.