Can AI let creativity flourish? The perspectives of filmmakers and VP of Creative

There's no debating it, AI isn't going anywhere.

Although there's a valid conversation about whether or not AI can take over editors, writers, or concept art directors, a majority accept the fact that AI is inevitable and are now pondering its potential to revolutionize the way work gets done.
At Cannes, I heard opinions from artists like will.i.am from Black Eyed Peas fame discuss how AI will transform the world in the next 10 years. Much of the conversation was focused on the ways in which AI has been rapidly unlocking the potential of people's dormant abilities and its effects on creative processes.

I've been a creative director for 20plus years, I was looking to voice my opinions and take this as an opportunity engage in a conversation with my community.

What's the situation? And how do we move forward in the future?

Here's the way AI could do right now.

"I was a magician before I was a filmmaker. Pretty quickly, when you're a magician, you learn that any sufficiently modern technology can be compared to magic. It can even be terrifying if you don't know how it's working or what's happening. That's the same way I feel with AI being an artist or other businessperson who makes money the thoughts that are in your mind onto the paper or monitor, AI is a scary issue because it may replace you."   Ben Proudfoot, Oscar-winning short doc directory, Found as CEO of Breakwater Studios

Creativity is an inherently human quality that AI cannot easily duplicate.

Midjourney went live in July 2022. ChatGPT followed close behind the following month in November of that same year. In the time since, we've witnessed self-described "non-creatives" unlock creativity that has gone inaccessible due to skill gaps.

The results of some of these projects are quite impressive, and the tools have developed so rapidly, you'd think you'd forgotten that the tools are just a year old.

AI will help you to communicate concepts

Nuanced concepts for pictures, stories, or music have been limited by the necessary techniques and abilities required to bring those ideas to life.

In the recent year, such images could be created with only a couple of keystrokes

If you have a proven creator, such as award-winning filmmaker Hashem Al-Ghaili the opportunity is greater.

Take a look at his AI-generated short film " Last Stand," which depicts how humankind would react in the event that extraterrestrials came into contact.

"AI is going to have us look at the world in a way we've never considered thinking about," says Crystal Edmonds who is the head of accounts as well as event Activation for Magnet Media Films. "I believe that it's going to expand our thinking. It will teach us something we've never thought we wanted to know about. It's likely that you'll see people just unlock another dimension of their creativity with AI."

Consider, for example, Staff Pick winner Paul Trillo's short film "Thank You for Not Answering."

Instead of trying to achieve realism the designer deliberately aims for the dreamlike style that is characteristic of Runway's Gen-2. "As the man who leaves a voicemail to an individual from his previous life, he's flooded with fragments of his fading memory and imagines a life that might have been."

A true artist he's adapted to the weaknesses and strengths of the medium to create something unique.

AI is a great tool to validate your ideas

There is no doubt that while these are stunning examples of how AI is being employed to convey an artistic vision, AI for commercial use is at present an unproven gimmick.

Check out the AI-generated beer commercial. This is a product from the time, and it could not be considered to be a legitimate advertisement if run as a legitimate commercial.

It does, however, give more than enough details to communicate an idea to executive more effectively than a moodboard sketch or elevator pitch ever could.

Thanks to generative AI technology it is no longer necessary to depend on your words to create an appealing visual for ten or more people: Instead, you can make use of a descriptive prompt in order to create the ideal sizzle film, animatics, or pre-visualizations to get people to buy into a vision.

What do these mean for creatives today?

Start learning how to write an effective request for AI.

"I think that this generation will upskill into the tools that we have available to us and start making use of generative AI both in written and visual mediums," says Orlando Baeza, Chief Marketing Officer as well as Chief Revenue Officer of Flock Freight. "I believe there's actually plenty of growth in jobs there, but it'll require upskilling our current force, and then this next generation of employees will be able to evolve the process."

AI could save production time

The current video-making process takes on average between two and three weeks to produce from beginning to completion However, AI has sped this process up, freeing filmmakers to think more freely and giving producers an extra time for tasks that requires focused craftsmanship.

"I consider that one of the most significant issues that the industry faces is the cost to make a movie. There's a high barrier of entry to make a movie -- one unique aspect of the process is that it makes film making more accessible to everyone," continues Baeza. "So If AI or machine learning are tools that could help a person with only a few resources to reach large audience, then that's a good thing, right?"

AI is already making videos easier to produce through automation of processes such as editing transcription, personalization and the scheduling. In particular, adding or removing items from the background of videos was a painstaking, time-intensive process -- but it can now be done with the Generative Fill tool.

"I think organizations will see AI as efficiency and productivity improvements," says Baeza. "I believe AI will become a powerful partner and probably be embedded inside of organizations that are creative."

Here's the thing AI cannot aid you in.

AI will not help when you become viral.

Machine learning works by crunching previously-used data and analyzing the patterns of what it had previously eaten. In the example above, an machine learning or generative AI tool can produce a gorgeous picture of a blue-colored cup that is based on hundreds of photos it has gone through of blue cups.

It's not about copying the same thing that's been tried before It's the process of framing ideas in a new way, putting a new perspective on the old concepts or establishing a connection which no one else created. In the words of Steve Jobs famously said:

"Some people say give the clients what they want, however, that's not how I think. Our job is to know what they're likely to be looking for prior to giving them what they want. I believe Henry Ford once said, 'If I'd ask the customers what they were looking for I would have gotten that they wanted a speedier horse.' People don't know the things they'd like until you present it to them. Our task is to read things that are not yet visible on a page."   Steve Jobs, Co-founder of Apple

Creativity is the result of art and science and AI is really adept in the science part of this equation.

There are some formulaic, repeatable best practices which we employ in the field and that AI can reproduce, for instance the rule of threes or using a large red font in order to advertise a sale. Yet, AI isn't able to be forward-looking: it can't recognize virality, or provide a new, innovative perspective which customers would love.

Creatives have good news. Differentiate yourself with creative concepts, and then utilize AI to bring those ideas to life.

AI can't replicate the creative method.

One of the wonderful benefits of creativity is that -- no matter how detailed your vision is, your concept develops a personality of its own as it's developed. Everyone who touches the concept brings their personal ideas and perspectives to it, which means the final product has an appeal that you could not have imagined.

An editor from the film industry I worked with once told me, "You might have shot your storyboard but your storyboard isn't really relevant anymore and I'm just going to utilize the footage I've got." Even if everything was done as per the storyboard, this film editor might highlight details or modify items in a manner which was different from the originally planned idea.

Currently, I don't see any way to use AI to mimic the creative process in that method.

It doesn't have a unique perspective that it could introduce into the process like the video editor. And so, even if AI is used during the process of creation -for example, to help speed ideas or edits -- humans remain a part of the process of creation itself.

Stay curious and keep your mind open

The bottom line is that AI can speed up our ability to communicate our vision, and it's a catalyst to allow a new generation of creators to emerge and do feats that we'd never imagined. If I had to capture the moment in a phrase that would describe the moment, it would be excited and nervous as unlike any other time for a long while, we're looking towards the future.

Really though, I'm just one person, and I have a collection of ideas and thoughts. I think we should keep looking at possibilities using a playful curiosity, maintain an open mind, and continue the dialogue.

And, if you're curiousWhere do you stand? How are you using AI currently, and where do you think it's taking us?