Pakistan, Singapore creators behind first AI-generated series on life of Prophet Muhammad

KARACHI: The first AI-generated web series on the life of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) has been created by content creators and producers from Pakistan and Singapore, who said they aimed to overcome “traditional costs, time and conceptualisation”. using artificial intelligence.

Titled “Muhammad: Mercy to the Multiverse,” the web series is a collaboration between Qalbox’s MuslimPro, a global subscription video-on-demand entertainment streaming service for Muslims, and Qur’anscape, an online platform for spiritual education.

MuslimPro’s description of the series, which does not include visual images of the Prophet, states:

Immerse yourself in the animated series depicting the life of Prophet Muhammad PBUH, explore the pre-prophethood stages, post-revelation challenges and Muhammad’s compassionate essence.

The Qur’anscape and Qalbox global project team was spread across Singapore, the US, the UK and Pakistan, with most of the technical work being done in Pakistan. The screenplay is written by Lahore-based Fatima Sattar and the show is produced by Pakistan-based Abbas Arslan, who is the CEO of Qur’anscape. The series is directed by Emad Khalid, co-founder of Lahore-based content creation agency Prompt Media Lab, and executive produced by Junaidah Bte Said Khan, who heads Singapore-based Qalbox.

“The project aims to use artificial intelligence to introduce a new perspective on the Prophet Muhammad and other Quranic stories that aims to overcome the traditional limitations of cost, time and conceptualization,” producer Arslan told Arab News.

He said the reason the team chose AI for the series was his desire to help “use generative AI to tell deeply meaningful stories.”

“Generative AI offers unique advantages, such as the ability to quickly transform human ideas into reality, which have been critical to delivering these projects effectively and efficiently,” said Arslan.

Kalbox’s Khan said that the collaboration between Kalbox and Kuranseip was “a first in the faith genre”.

“By integrating AI with AI, we’ve been able to bring these timeless narratives to life in a way that feels fresh and deeply reverent,” Khan told Arab News. “This technology has allowed us to present stories that have been treasured for generations in a way that is accessible and accessible to today’s diverse audiences.”

Screenwriter Fatima Sattar, who wrote the screenplay for Sarmad Khosat’s Kamli, said she began researching the series with lectures by Yasir Qadi, a prominent Pakistani-American Muslim scholar and theologian.

“The deadline was really tight, so I couldn’t really learn more than that, but we have a mufti [cleric] On board, who reads every draft and diligently corrects any mistakes I make,” Sattar said. “I found the whole process very understandable.”

Director Emad Khalid of Prompt Media Lab described the challenges of trying to portray the life of the Prophet.

“As Muslims, we have a great responsibility to ensure that our representation is authentic and thoroughly researched,” said Khalid, the award-winning director of the Gen:48 AI Film Festival 2023 to his credit.

While the research and script for the Al-centric project was the same as traditional filmmaking, Khalid said that in the generation phase, the team used AI image generation tools to bring the script to life, then converted the images into a coherent video sequence. Generate character voices using artificial intelligence.

“Despite its rapid evolution, artificial intelligence still struggles to accurately convey certain details, especially when it comes to creating imagery that deviates from a predominantly Western context,” Khalid said.

“Re-creating the specific environment and culture of the Prophet Muhammad’s time presented a unique set of challenges.” We were forced to use AI image editing tools to refine the generated images to our satisfaction. “

The show has 10 episodes, two of which were released exclusively on Qalbox by MuslimPro. The remaining episodes will be released during Ramadan.

“The response to the series has been overwhelmingly positive… The marketing and promotional efforts have made the show one of Qalbox’s most successful shows,” said executive producer Khan.

“There is great anticipation for the upcoming episodes and the series has been particularly well received in countries such as the US, France, Indonesia, UK, Canada and Malaysia. The positive response on social media, with viewers sharing the series with family and friends, further underscores its impact and achievements.”