Texas USA based footage library StormStock (view their PAN listing) have launched a campaign called AI Free Since ’93™ …a snappy title we quite like here at PAN!
The campaign reminds and reassures content buyers of the agency’s enduring commitment to authentic, camera-captured cinematography.
For footage researchers, archive producers, editors, producers, directors, post-production supervisors, and rights and clearances professionals, provenance has become increasingly important. Authentic camera-captured footage provides confidence that the imagery documents real events as they occurred, preserving the natural behavior of storms, lightning, clouds, atmospheric light, and environmental conditions. It also provides transparent authorship, established copyright ownership, and trusted licensing from an experienced content producer.
Filmmaker and cinematographer Martin Lisius, the founder of StormStock, has spent more than three decades documenting severe weather and atmospheric phenomena by filming on location in some of nature’s most demanding environments. While generative artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming media production, StormStock’s mission remains unchanged: to document the natural world through traditional cinematography and make that authentic imagery available for licensing worldwide.
“There is no joy in telling a computer to create a storm,” Martin told PAN. “I’d rather be standing in the wind and rain, witnessing something extraordinary that nature created, and capturing it through the lens of a camera. That’s where the adventure is—and that’s where authentic footage comes from.”
As part of the AI Free Since ’93 initiative, every new StormStock footage license now includes the StormStock AI Free Since ’93™ Guarantee, affirming that every licensed clip:
- Was captured by professional cinematographers using cameras and lenses in real-world conditions.
- Documents actual weather and natural phenomena—not AI-generated imagery.
- Has not been generated or materially altered using generative artificial intelligence.
- Originates directly from the copyright owner with documented authorship and clear provenance.
“We’re simply continuing the course we’ve maintained since 1993,” Martin said. “Our clients license StormStock because they know exactly what they’re getting—authentic cinematography created by professionals who were there. They’ll continue receiving footage they can trust creatively, editorially, and legally.”
• The AI Free Since ’93 campaign will appear across StormStock’s website, licensing platform, marketing materials, trade show exhibits, demo reels, and client communications as a symbol of the company’s continuing commitment to authentic cinematography and trusted licensing.