Darren Aronofsky Releases AI Animated Series 'On This Day... 1776', Reaping Pros and Cons

Liputan6.com, Jakarta - Renowned director Darren Aronofsky has officially launched an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered animated short series titled "On This Day... 1776."

This ambitious project focuses on crucial moments in the American Revolutionary War, specifically the events that occurred in 1776, offering a new perspective on historical storytelling.

This series marks a significant step for Darren Aronofsky in exploring AI technology for cinema.

As executive producer, he leads his AI studio, Primordial Soup, in a strategic collaboration with tech giant Google DeepMind and leading content distributor TIME Studios.

The trailer and first two episodes of "On This Day... 1776" were released on January 29, 2026, sparking mixed reactions from the public.

Darren Aronofsky, known for profound cinematic works like "Black Swan" and "Requiem for a Dream," is now making a mark in the realm of artificial intelligence-based film production.

He serves as executive producer for the series "On This Day... 1776," a project that marks the debut of his AI studio, Primordial Soup.

Primordial Soup was founded with the mission of harnessing the potential of AI to create innovative and experimental films.

In addition to Primordial Soup, Google DeepMind contributed by providing advanced generative AI technology, while TIME Studios served as the primary distributor through TIME's YouTube channel.

Salesforce also provided support, whose global team of writers, designers, and AI specialists collaborated effectively through the Salesforce Slack platform.

This synergy enabled the "On This Day... 1776" project to combine diverse creative and technical expertise.

"On This Day... 1776" presents itself in a unique short-form animated series format, blending traditional filmmaking techniques with the advanced capabilities of generative AI.

This hybrid approach aims to create a new visual experience for viewers.The series' primary focus is retelling key and often-overlooked moments from the American Revolutionary War.

Each episode is designed to coincide with the 250th anniversary of the historical event depicted, providing strong contextual relevance.

The series' overarching goal is to reframe the narrative of the American Revolution, not as a predetermined event, but as a fragile experiment shaped by the struggles and decisions of the individuals involved.

While the visuals are AI-generated, the voice acting is entrusted to unionized actors from the Screen Actors Guild (SAG).

The release of the trailer and first two episodes of "On This Day... 1776" on January 29, 2026, immediately attracted attention, but with mixed reactions from the public.

Much criticism emerged, particularly on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), highlighting the aesthetics of the AI-generated visuals.

Internet users expressed disappointment and skepticism about the quality of the AI-generated visuals, with some commenting on the decline in quality from Darren Aronofsky's previous work.

Criticism also targeted the very concept of using AI for sensitive historical storytelling.The first episode, "January 1: The Flag," dramatizes the historic moment when George Washington raised the Grand Union Flag on Prospect Hill.

This episode attempted to recreate the atmosphere of early 1776.

Meanwhile, the second episode, "January 10: Common Sense," chronicles the arrival of Thomas Paine from England and Benjamin Franklin's encouragement of him to write a revolutionary pamphlet.

Darren Aronofsky's involvement in "On This Day... 1776" is not a single project, but rather part of a larger push to explore the potential of AI technology in the filmmaking industry. His production company, Primordial Soup, is actively collaborating with Google to further explore this technology.

In this partnership, Google DeepMind is providing filmmakers with early access to advanced generative AI video tools, including the text-to-video tool Veo.

Previously, the first project from this partnership was "Ancestra," a short film directed by Eliza McNitt, with Darren Aronofsky as executive producer.

The film, scheduled to premiere at the Tribeca Festival in June 2025, combines live-action filmmaking with AI-generated imagery, such as cosmic events and the microscopic world.