Utopai Studios Launches With Historical Epic ‘Cortés’ and Sci-Fi Series Project ‘Space,’ and Partnerships With K5 Intl. and Opsis

By Leo Barraclough

Utopai Studios has debuted as a Hollywood film and television studio, rebranding from Cybever, known for its 3D world creation and video generation. The company has partnered with sales outfit K5 Intl. and previsualization powerhouse Opsis.

Utopai is led by co-CEOs Cecilia Shen, Cybever’s CEO and co-founder, and media entrepreneur Marco Weber, who becomes a partner in Utopai and moves from acting chairman of Cybever into the co-CEO role. Utopai’s core team includes Jie Yang, Cybever’s co-founder and chief technology officer, who will continue to serve as CTO of Utopai; production designer Kirk Petruccelli as chief creative officer; and filmmaker Martin Weisz as chief workflow officer.

Utopai will originate and produce its own slate of high-profile projects.

The first is “Cortés,” written by Nick Kazan, who was Oscar-nominated for “Reversal of Fortune” and also wrote “Fallen” and co-wrote “At Close Range.” Set in 1519, “Cortés” follows Hernán Cortés as he defies impossible odds to conquer a nation.

“Cortés” will be released in two films at 100-minutes each, produced by Weber (“The Thirteenth Floor,” “Igby Goes Down”) alongside Kazan, and directed by Kirk Petruccelli, a production designer on “Blade,” “The Patriot” and “Midway.”

“I have been trying to tell this story for more than 30 years. It was always impossible: too big, too expensive, just always ‘too,’” said Kazan. “Finally, I have found a home and creative partners with the talent and vision and a technology that will allow moviegoers to witness in some form events that took place more than 500 years ago.

“The facts of that time (the arrival of the Spaniards, the battles, the eventual fall of the astonishing city of Tenochtitlan) are rich and complicated, and many are disputed. Our goal is to tell one story – not the story, because there are many sides to it. We want to entertain, to give viewers a glimpse of the clash between two very different, almost alien cultures. We are, and we must be, bold in this.”

The second production is sci-fi series Project “Space,” an eight-episode show set in the future and described as “’Top Gun’ meets ‘War of the Worlds.’” All episodes were written by Vanessa Coifman (“Fireflies in the Garden,” “Unthinkable”) and Weisz (“The Hills Have Eyes”), with Weisz directing.

The series follows a group of young pilots tasked with defending Earth from an alien threat. Weber and Coifman serve as executive producers.

“With Project ‘Space,’ we will try to push the envelope in the sci-fi genre creatively, utilizing our world building technology that will allow us to build a breathtaking universe and fill it with an extraordinary story and characters,” said Weisz.

“While in the traditional filmmaking process this would have required a significantly higher investment, we are lucky to not have that pressure. Our innovative team just enjoys the daily increasing opportunities, as well as the freedom, to go to places that others couldn’t go before visually, liberating the entire production process as we go.”

Utopai has formed an exclusive joint venture with K5 Intl., the sales company behind such films as Kevin Costner’s “Horizon: An American Saga” and Netflix’s “Anon,” directed by Andrew Niccol and starring Amanda Seyfried and Clive Owen.

Under this agreement, all Utopai productions will be represented exclusively by K5 Intl. under the Utopai x K5 brand, with series premiering at MIPCOM in October and feature films debuting at the American Film Market in November.

“We are thrilled to partner with Cecilia and Marco at this crucial and exciting time, when the world is undergoing the most significant technical revolution mankind has ever encountered,” said Daniel Baur, CEO of K5 Intl. “We love their passion for filmmakers and their deep understanding of how to use advanced technology.”

Utopai has also entered a strategic agreement with previsualization powerhouse Opsis, which has worked on “Game of Thrones,” “Captain America” and “Wicked.”

“We’ve followed video-to-video AI from the start, and Utopai’s early results were nothing short of extraordinary—far beyond anything out there,” said Henrik Fett, CEO of Opsis. “Our aligned vision made this an ideal partnership. This isn’t about handing the keys to AI, but using it as the time-saving tool it’s meant to be. By combining our proven visualization pipeline with generative tools, we’re expanding creative possibilities while keeping control with the filmmakers.”

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