Artificial intelligence in filmmaking is becoming more common, but the reactions are not all positive. Photo courtesy of ponsulak/Adobe Stock.

As AI continues to grow more powerful and skilled with each passing day, many industries are starting to look for uses for this powerful technology. One of these industries in question happens to be one of the biggest industries: the film industry. Many companies in the film industry are currently seeking to try and use Artificial Intelligence to take over different aspects of filmmaking, such as artificial actors and visual effects. 

Many traditional filmmakers are very concerned about this new process and rightfully so. While this technology may be efficient in terms of delivering results, it eliminates any room for any kind of true creativity and soul, and instead replaces them in favor of procedural text prompts. Therefore, as society we should not lean toward using this technology when it comes to pursuing the art of filmmaking. 

One reason why this practice of using AI in filmmaking shouldn’t be used is because it isn’t able to capture the personal human connection traditionally-made films have. While pro-AI advocates tout the amazing technical benefits of the AI-powered models generating your idea without putting much thought into actually visualizing it yourself, the price of that benefit makes it hard for viewers to connect to the generated story the AI is trying to tell, and they instead focus on what kind of technique they used to create the whole thing. With traditional filmmaking, viewers easily get more invested due to the guarantee of the whole thing being made by real people, leading them to have less hesitation to connect with the story and the characters of the film.

Another drawback to AI filmmaking is that it gives the filmmakers less creative control over how the final film turns out. AI filmmaking programs may have quicker turnaround times when it comes to visualizing your ideas for your film, you don’t get very much control over how you want it to exactly look, leaving many AI-films with any kind of personal artistic nuance. With traditional filmmaking, while the process is more time consuming, filmmakers who use this process have the ability to fine-tune their projects whatever way they want, thus giving their films a unique, yet polished style that helps set it apart from other films.

And lastly, one more drawback to the AI-driven filmmaking method is the inability to create any emotional depth. AI filmmaking software mainly focuses on the technical aspects of filmmaking, while sidling any kind of focus to the personal creative direction of the filmmaker in question. With traditional filmmaking, the main focus is the creative side first and foremost, thus allowing filmmakers to add meaningful storytelling details that give their projects much needed and appreciated depth.

Furthermore, while I can agree that it is efficient and useful for the technical side of filmmaking, AI can truly never replicate the human touch of traditional filmmaking. Because while it may be intelligent when it comes to being artificial, the one thing an AI can’t do that traditional-filmmaking CAN do is the one key skill that is always required when it comes to telling a good story: being emotionally intelligent.