While many corporate film industries are leaning further towards the use of AI technology in moviemaking due to it being a cheap and convenient alternative, many people object to this lack of passion. Big corporations like Pixar and Disney that once used to be a staple of many childhoods globally are now falling to the use of AI in their moviemaking. They claim that it assists in minor details such as lighting, rendering, and audio quality such as seen in the 2023 animated film Elemental. These small usages of Artificial Intelligence may assist the animators and save time as well as money, but when AI gets more involved in storytelling, people begin to worry about ethics.
A story by the Los Angeles Times from this year claims that studios were using shows to train AI without the permission of their writers. Television programs such as Leverage, Transformers, and The Librarians were proved to have been in a database used to train AI models, their writers unknowing to this. A 148 day strike by the Writers Guild of America was put to an end this July when guardrails were set against this, but many in Hollywood still have great concerns over the morality of AI in film. Writers and animators fear the loss of their jobs and the misuse of their work.
Famed filmmakers such as Steven Spielberg agree that while AI may come in handy for menial tasks, it should never replace human creativity like that in the writing and raw creation stages of production. The debates like this center around ethicality. AI could take jobs and strip art of what makes it human. Many real people who work in and enjoy the entertainment industry object to this. The definition of “art” in the Oxford dictionary is “the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination.” AI strips visual art of this charm, making it appear soulless and uninspired. Acclaimed Japanese animator and filmmaker, Hayao Miyazaki, has expressed his view on the growing issue, calling AI animation “an insult to life itself.” Many follow this idea, viewing AI to be the downfall of human imagination. Miyazaki himself believes that while it may be a handy tool, it should not be used for creation; it should be used for assistance. Though it may be cheaper and quicker, the reliance on AI to create “art” is viewed to be slothful and immoral.
AI is not only looked down on in the film industry. Recently, the phrase “why read something no one bothered to write” has been floating around social media platforms such as TikTok. The artists, writers, readers, and more of the world take offense to the passionless use of Artificial Intelligence, especially in image creation and writing. A big moment for indie animation and artists everywhere was the release of the 2024 film Flow, which was created entirely on the free software Blender. This Oscar winner inspired many to create despite limited resources.
Humanity as one society has been making art in as many ways as possible since the dawn of time. Through song and visuals and writing, we have told stories of passion and imagination. It has never been about the resources we have access to or their quality. Did cavemen complain that they didn’t have the right utensils for their creations? The innovation of AI generation should never take this away, as art is what makes us human. While studios may begin to use AI as an aid, it should never write or bring stories to life.
