LOS ANGELES, California: When visual effects veteran Michael Eng began scanning job listings after last year's production slowdown, he noticed a recurring requirement missing from his resume: machine learning experience.

Laid off amid the downturn, Eng enrolled in Curious Refuge, an online school focused on AI-powered filmmaking, to adapt to the rapid technological changes sweeping Hollywood.

"I kind of just embraced it," Eng said of learning AI tools after being sidelined. "I jumped in."

Launched in May 2023, Curious Refuge has become a training hub for industry professionals seeking to update their skills as generative AI reshapes production workflows. The school says about 10,000 students have taken its courses or workshops, with 95 percent coming from entertainment or advertising backgrounds.

While some in Hollywood remain wary of artificial intelligence — particularly after the debut last year of AI-generated actress Tilly Norwood, which SAG-AFTRA criticized as replacing human performers with "synthetics" — others are using the technology to pivot careers.

Petra Molnar is among them. A self-described creative who could not gain entry into art school in Budapest, she was working as a dental hygienist in London when the COVID-19 pandemic shut her office. She began exploring digital product design and built a dental app before turning to AI tools like ChatGPT and Midjourney.

Molnar enrolled at Curious Refuge in 2023 and now works in advertising, creating AI-driven promotional videos. One of her projects for AI infrastructure company WhiteFiber was displayed on Nasdaq's large LED screen in Times Square when the company went public in September.

"AI genuinely changed my life," Molnar said.

Founded in 2020, Curious Refuge began offering AI-assisted documentary and narrative filmmaking courses in early 2023 and now provides instruction in 11 languages to students in 170 countries. Classes are pre-recorded and available online, with weekly office hours and meetups at events such as the Cannes Film Festival. The school also hosts an active community on Discord.

Curious Refuge has conducted AI workshops for studios, though the founders, Caleb and Shelby Ward, declined to name them due to non-disclosure agreements.

"We love to step in and create a baseline of understanding for the entire studio," said CEO and co-founder Caleb Ward. "Here's what's possible with artificial intelligence. Here are the creative possibilities. Here are just different takeaways that you can get from utilizing the technology."

A 2024 study commissioned by the Concept Art Association and the Animation Guild predicted that nearly 120,000 film, television, and animation jobs could be consolidated, replaced, or eliminated by the end of this year because of generative AI.

Still, some see opportunity. "There will be some job loss and job displacement, but there will also be job creation and a generation of new storytellers that emerge, in part, because financial barriers are being reduced or they simply now have access to make things that were not otherwise even available to them," said Chris Jacquemin of WME.

Promise, an AI-focused studio backed by Peter Chernin's North Road and Andreessen Horowitz, acquired Curious Refuge last February to build a pipeline of AI-savvy talent.

For Eng, the investment in new skills paid off quickly. "I immediately jumped into the tools and started getting work immediately," he said.