Steven Soderbergh is planning to use "a lot of AI" in his new film about the Spanish-American War.

The Hollywood director has revealed he's working on an ambitious new project based around the 1898 conflict and he already has The Secret Agent actor Wagner Moura onboard to star, but he's confessed he will have to use a lot of computer wizardry to recreate the ocean battle scenes.

In an interview with Filmmaker Magazine, Soderbergh explained he is "trying to get a movie made about the Spanish-American War" and when asked how he would recreate the ships, the director replied: "A lot of AI."

He went on to add: "It's a really good story, and nobody's really done it. Every day that goes by it becomes more timely. I've just got to get it cast.

"I've got Wagner Moura. I need a few more people. I have two studios circling, but it's all about how much I can do it for.

"But if I can get the right cast together, that will eventize it, and people will feel they have to see it now rather than waiting two months until it streams. It's a weird time to be making movies."

In the interview, Soderbergh also spoke about his upcoming documentary about John Lennon and Yoko Ono, revealing he's been using AI on the project and it's been "really fun" but also very challenging because it requires "close human supervision".

He said: "I've been working with AI lately on the John Lennon and Yoko Ono documentary that we're almost done with. AI has been helpful in creating thematically surreal images that occupy a dream space rather than a literal space.

"And that's been really fun because you need a Ph.D. in literature to tell it what to do. But like every other piece of technology, it desperately requires very close human supervision."

It comes after Soderbergh recently revealed he burned "44 years' worth of notebooks" which documented his directing career - admitting he didn't want them to be poured over in years to come and he didn't want them cluttering up his home space.

According to Indiewire.com, he explained: "A couple years ago - and I'd been thinking about it for a while - I burned 44 years' worth of notebooks.

"I went to a friend of mine's house outside the city, up in the Hudson Valley. He has a fire pit, and I sort of leafed through [the notebooks], and then would spray them with lighter fluid, and torch them. It was really cathartic."