New Lesson on Sora 2 is Out Now – Brainstorming Ideas and Storyboarding + Black Friday Offers

MZed EducationAI

by Mascha DeikovaNovember 28^th, 2025

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Filmmaker and educator Drew Geraci has just launched a November addition to his course “Directing the Future: Ethical AI Video for Filmmakers” on MZed. The new lesson shows us around Sora 2, the infamous video generator by OpenAI. Drew demonstrates how to implement this tool in storyboarding and idea brainstorming, and explains why it is unethical to use it to produce actual content. Below is a quick glimpse into the new lesson on Sora 2. Also, make sure to check out the once-in-a-year sale on MZed, where you can get the annual membership for 40% off, and courses up to 75% off this Black Friday.

“Directing the Future” was released at the beginning of October and covers different ways to ethically integrate AI video generators into your workflow. (We wrote about it here.) In the course demos, Drew Geraci mostly relies on Google Flow but also demonstrates other deep-learning models (alongside useful non-video-generating AI tools like Topaz Labs and Hailuo AI).

At the same time, the course is meant to be ever-evolving. Thus, as soon as Sora 2 went out into beta and ensured some buzz (both positive and negative), Drew started working on a new lesson. Here it is!

What is Sora 2?

Sora 2 is an AI video generator created by OpenAI. It understands natural language and turns simple text prompts into comprehensive videos (realistic or stylized). Compared to its predecessor, this model is much more advanced in terms of physical realism and multi-shot consistency. It can also add precise dialogue lines, voice-over, sounds, or music on request. The free plan’s clip length is limited to 15 seconds for now.

At the same time, Sora 2 is a social media platform for AI videos, accessible through an invite-based app (not available in all countries yet). In Drew’s opinion, the majority of the videos that pop up on the platform indeed look like they might have been shot on a cellphone, and remind one of viral social media content. He thinks this is pretty much what Sora 2 is about: Crafting wild situations that would unlikely happen in real life, and sharing them with other users for laughs. A mug shot of a raccoon in a central police department, or a twerking Santa Claus, to name a few.

So, how could it be useful for actual filmmaking?

Ethical concerns

As Drew Geraci puts it, Sora 2 is great for exploring ideas, testing shots out of your head, and storyboarding something you can show your client before implementing it the real way, using traditional cinematography. Apart from that, he doesn’t see any use for this tool. In his words, there is nothing ethical about this form of AI.

At the beginning, Sora 2 allowed users to upload their reference photos, and Drew used his cat Phil as a test subject. Following a text description, Sora 2 turned the cat’s headshot into its little tap dance.

However, the model took the liberty of adding music and vocals from a random singing woman to that clip. So, Drew wouldn’t want to put this kind of content out for real. Now, Sora 2 only allows using characters from their site; you can’t feed it with your own photos or references. As we’re aware, OpenAI trains its models on whatever online content it can scrape, so credits, licensing, attribution, and further ethical considerations remain questionable. It obviously generates from someone else’s material, adds Drew Geraci:

I wouldn’t want that as a creative, and I don’t think you want that either.

New lesson on Sora 2 and what it includes

Apart from a demo tour and ethical considerations, in the new lesson on Sora 2, you will find:

• Drew’s examples of using the tool to brainstorm ideas, test shots, and compositions;
• Honest review, showcasing things that don’t work out well, and where you can notice the AI’s fingerprints;
• Tips that help Drew be creative and come up with outlandish stories;
• Suggestions on how else Sora 2 can be useful (for instance, to test your prompts and sentence structure before you move them to other video generators);
• Four keys to join the beta tests of Sora 2, randomly placed in the lesson.

The added lesson is already available for MZed Pro subscribers here.

What else do you get with MZed Pro?

With MZed Pro, you can stream hundreds of hours of filmmaking education. We continually add new courses (several are currently in production). Don’t miss our Black Friday deal, available until November 30, which drops the yearly subscription from $349 to just $199 for access to over 850 lessons! (Read all about it here!) After the offer ends, the price reverts to its standard rate.

Starting at just $29/month (billed at $349 in the first year, $199 from the second year, or billed monthly at $49), here’s what you’ll get:

• 60+ courses, over 800+ high-quality lessons.
• Highly produced courses from educators with decades of experience and awards, including a Pulitzer Prize and an Academy Award.
• Unlimited access to stream all content during the 12 months.
• Offline download and viewing with the MZed iOS app.
• Discounts to ARRI Academy online courses, exclusively on MZed.
• Most of our courses provide an industry-recognized certificate upon completion.
• Purchasing the courses outright would cost over $9,500.
• Course topics include cinematography, directing, lighting, cameras and lenses, producing, indie filmmaking, writing, editing, color grading, audio, time-lapse, pitch decks, and more.
• 7-day money-back guarantee if you decide it’s not for you (on annual billing only).

Special offers: Black Friday & giveaway

MZed has two awesome offers running right now, and I had to share them with you. Their Fall Giveaway is live until December 10th, and you can win a $100 B&H gear voucher (or an equivalent prize if you’re outside the U.S.). Enter now or read about it first.

And on top of that, their Black Friday deal is wild this year: 40% off an annual membership and up to 75% off individual courses. If you’ve been wanting an excuse to dive deeper into filmmaking education, this is honestly the best moment to jump in. For more information, visit the MZed Black Friday page or read our article on it.

Full disclosure: MZed is owned by CineD.
Join MZed Pro now and start watching today!

And what do you think about Sora 2? Let us know in the comments below!

Feature image source: Sora 2 / Drew Geraci / MZed.