A stunning Marathon short and an unexpected AI debate
Bungie and Sony are betting big on the Marathon reboot, even though the project has hit a rough patch lately. About half a year ago, Sony brought in Oscar winning director Alberto Mielgo to create an eight minute cinematic short to introduce the world, style, and vibe of the new Marathon.
If the name sounds familiar, Mielgo worked on visually bold projects like Love Death and Robots and the animated short The Windshield Wiper. His Marathon piece is no different. It is stylish, sharply composed, and dripping with atmosphere. It looks like the kind of sci fi trailer that gets shared around even by people who do not care about the game itself.
But instead of everyone just arguing about lore and whether the new Marathon can live up to Bungie’s classic shooter roots, a different topic crashed into the conversation: artificial intelligence.
On Instagram, Mielgo felt the need to make a very direct statement about how the short was made. He wrote that he could not believe we live in a time where he has to clarify this, then added a very clear message.
According to Mielgo, nothing in the short was made with generative AI. Not the paintings, not the 2D animation, not the 3D work, not the compositing, and not the final renders. Instead he says it came from a large team of around 155 people putting in months of serious work. In his words, time is still the Achilles heel of real production.
The strange part is that it is not obvious where the AI accusations came from. The YouTube comments are not flooded with claims about AI. Reddit discussions around Marathon have focused more on in game artificial intelligences like Durandal and how they will show up in the reboot, not whether the trailer itself is AI generated.
So the director’s post feels partly like a preemptive defense and partly like a reaction to a growing mood around AI art in general. A lot of fans are getting suspicious any time they see a visual that looks a bit too smooth or surreal.
Mielgo’s view on AI and the ChatGPT twist
In the same Instagram post, Mielgo admitted that he is still figuring out how he feels about AI tools. He did not plant a flag in either camp but he did say one thing very clearly. He does not believe AI will ever replace the basic human urge and joy of creating art and painting. That core motivation, he says, will stay human.
Then comes the slightly ironic punchline. At the end of his message, Mielgo mentions that the text was kindly edited with ChatGPT. So his stance seems to be that AI is already a practical tool he is happy to use in some ways while still wanting to draw a hard line around generative visuals in his film work.
It is a pretty common position right now. Many creatives are wary of AI generated images and training data, but still reach for AI writing or coding tools when they need help polishing text or speeding up boring parts of the job. Mielgo might not have a fully formed philosophy about it yet, but he is clearly reacting to a climate where any polished art triggers suspicion.
The stolen art controversy and Bungie’s Marathon plans
The Marathon cinematic was already under extra scrutiny because of a separate controversy. Earlier this year, an artist accused Bungie of using her designs as reference material for Marathon art without permission. She said she was tired of big studios moodboarding and parasitising her designs while she struggles to make a living.
Fans started connecting that situation to the new short and asking whether any of that material might have slipped into Mielgo’s project. In comments that were later deleted but captured by The Game Post, Mielgo pushed back hard on that idea and also had some unfiltered words for the coverage.
He complained that spending years working hard on something cool only to have it overshadowed by what he called sphincter smelly press and headline readers is worse than the original texture issue. In a follow up message he claimed Bungie used a texture in Marathon accidentally, and that the situation was then blown out of proportion by the same press and by angry fans. He also clarified that none of the stolen text or fonts ever reached his own team on the cinematic.
The tone was very blunt and a bit hostile, and it is likely he meant to call the press assholes in a slightly awkward way. Either way, the main takeaway is that Mielgo wants distance between his hand crafted short and any accusations of plagiarism or AI fakery around the wider project.
Meanwhile Sony is still trying to keep the bigger picture on track. The company recently told investors that Marathon is expected to launch by March 2026. The wording was very much a we are doing this even if it hurts moment, with a promise to make corrections as needed along the way.
That leaves Marathon in a strange spot. On one hand it has a high end cinematic from an Oscar winning director loudly defending traditional artistry and a giant team of humans. On the other hand it is navigating modern game development headaches: asset controversies, fan distrust toward AI, and a firm release target ticking closer.
For players watching from the sidelines, the situation is almost as interesting as the game itself. Marathon is meant to bring back a legendary sci fi shooter universe, complete with iconic AIs like Durandal. But right now a lot of the conversation is about very real humans trying to prove that their work is not made by machines and not stolen from fellow artists.
We will have to wait and see if the final game can shift the focus back to what Bungie is best known for and what that lush cinematic promises: tight shooting, bold sci fi worlds, and a style that clearly comes from people who still care a lot about making cool things by hand.
Original article and image: https://www.pcgamer.com/software/ai/marathon-cinematic-director-alberto-mielgo-says-the-8-minute-reveal-video-was-not-made-with-ai-and-frankly-he-cant-believe-he-even-has-to-say-that/
