AI-Powered Video Production: Cinamon’s Innovative Approach

Introduction

The production process of art, particularly video production, has never been easier or more efficient. With the advent of AI technology, companies are leveraging large language models to create tools that enable the creation of high-quality videos and animations with minimal effort. This trend is expected to continue, with companies of all sizes utilizing AI-powered video generation platforms to streamline their workflow.

Popular AI-Powered Video Generation Tools

Several popular tools have emerged in this space, including Google’s Veo 2, OpenAI’s Sora, Runway, Luma AI, and Shanghai-based Hailuo. However, a South Korean startup called Cinamon is poised to claim a significant share of this burgeoning market. The company recently raised an $8.5 million Series B round to continue building its animated video generation platform, "CINEV," which is slated for launch in beta in the first half of 2025.

Cinamon’s Unique Approach

Cinamon’s platform provides a video generator that allows users to build 3D environments, direct scenes and actions, place characters, edit camera angles, and more – all with text prompts and sliders. According to CEO Doosun Hong, the company’s approach fundamentally differs from existing AI video generators, which create videos by generating pixels using text, images, and videos as reference materials. In contrast, CINEV combines a 3D asset library, AI motion generation, and a filmmaking-focused large language model to first construct 3D scenes complete with characters and elements, and then lets users edit them using its suite of video production and editing tools.

Key Features of CINEV

CINEV’s unique approach enables easier direction and editing without consistency/physics issues, making it particularly suitable for longer-form content like films and dramas. The platform’s output can serve as high-quality reference material for other AI video platforms, potentially enabling new workflows. As Hong noted, "Our approach enables easier direction and editing without consistency/physics issues, making it particularly suitable for longer-form content like films and dramas."

Background and Milestones

Cinamon started life in 2019 as Cinamon Games, a subsidiary of content production firm Vonvon. The company initially set up a JV with Naver WEBTOON, a Korean digital storytelling platform, to create Maybe, an interactive storytelling app. Facing growing data privacy concerns, Vonvon merged with Cinamon Games later in 2019 to focus solely on storytelling in the social content space.

Competitors and Market Potential

While competitors like Crazy Maple Studio have started offering animated interactive story apps, fiction apps, storytelling apps, and short-form videos, Cinamon has chosen to focus on creating 3D animation tools that can speed up and scale animation production for content creators and studios. Even though it cost more investment than tools for 2D content, they saw greater scalability potential.

Investment and Partnerships

In 2022, the startup began building its 3D animation platform, and later integrated AI features to enhance production efficiency. In September that year, South Korean gaming company Krafton, Naver Z (a unit of Korean internet giant Naver), and SNOW, (a camera app run by Naver), invested $10 million in Cinamon’s Series A. Going forward, Cinamon plans to use its investors’ IPs and 3D assets to bolster its offering.

Future Plans and Market Outlook

Cinamon plans to use the new capital for hiring more AI engineers and for R&D. The startup has a team of 60 staff with expertise in 3D graphics, AI, gaming, and content production. This Series B brings its total capital raised so far to $18.5 million (25 billion KRW). According to Hong, "Our potential users include comic, manga, webtoon artists, web novel writers, game developers, video creators, and traditional animators looking for easier workflows." In 2025, Cinamon plans to focus on customers ranging from individual creators to content IP companies looking for easier, faster, cheaper ways to create Anime, VTuber, and cinematic video game content.

Conclusion

Cinamon’s innovative approach to AI-powered video production has the potential to revolutionize the industry. With its unique combination of 3D asset libraries, AI motion generation, and filmmaking-focused large language models, CINEV is poised to become a leading platform for video generation and editing. As the market continues to evolve, Cinamon is well-positioned to capitalize on the growing demand for AI-powered video production tools.