The actual production cost of 'The Arc,' an AI drama produced without actors, sets, or props that was released last August, has been revealed.
According to a recent report by Business Insider, 'The Arc,' a five-episode sci-fi action series created using generative AI, used approximately $38,000—equivalent to around 50 million won—in AI credits. The total runtime is about 83 minutes, which breaks down to an average of roughly $7,600 per episode.
'The Arc' is the first original AI series produced by creator platform Artlist. Directed by Darin Stewart, AI content creator Simone Ferretti served as executive producer. The show follows death row inmate Isaac Ward, who dives into virtual simulations recreating historical battlefields to save his dying son.
The production method differs significantly from traditional filmmaking. Instead of using real actors, filming sets, costumes, or props, the images and video were generated using AI. During the image generation and video production process, the creators utilized several generative AI tools, including Google, OpenAI, Seedance, and Kling.
However, using AI did not mean scenes were completed with a single prompt. According to director Stewart, it took an average of 8 to 10 generations to achieve a single desired shot. To cut costs, the team also checked outputs in lower resolution first before selecting shots to re-generate in high resolution.
Production speed was considerably fast compared to traditional video production. The team completed the final cut of the first episode in about three and a half weeks, after which they parallelized workflows to produce multiple scenes and episodes simultaneously. Although the fifth and final episode runs for about 20 minutes, it was completed in the shortest timeframe among all episodes.
Thanks to the use of AI, scenes that would have required substantial production budgets if shot on location were brought to life. The series features diverse eras and locations, such as 1600s Japan and 1870s Montana in the United States. The production team explained that while it would have been difficult to build and film all these settings using conventional methods, generative AI significantly reduced constraints on physical locations and shooting environments.
That is not to say the entire production process was automated. The creators emphasized that key creative work—including story, characters, worldbuilding, and shot composition—was directly handled by humans. Creating character references and mood boards, as well as deciding on specific elements placed within scenes, all required the team's creative choices. However, the disclosed $38,000 figure represents the "AI credit cost" used during production rather than total production costs in the conventional sense. It should not be directly compared with total budgets that include labor, planning, and editing.
All five episodes of 'The Arc' premiered in London last August, and the series is currently available to watch on Artlist TV (YouTube channel).
