Are there ways to let AI unleash creative potential? The perspectives of filmmakers and VP of Creative

No one can argue with that, AI isn't going anywhere.

There is an ongoing discussion about whether AI can replace writers, editors, as well as concept creators, a lot of people accept the fact that AI is inevitable and are now considering its capability to transform how work is accomplished.
While at Cannes, I heard opinions from artists like will.i.am of Black Eyed Peas fame discuss the way in which AI will transform the world in the next decade. A lot of discussion focused on the way that AI is rapidly unlocking individuals' hidden talents and effects on creative processes.

Being a creative director for the past 20+ years, I wanted to voice my opinions and use this as an opportunity to start an open dialogue with the community.

What's the present state of affairs, and what's the next step to get there?

Here's the way AI is able to do today.

"I was a magician before I became a film maker. Very quickly, once you're a magician, discover that the most advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. Magic can also be frightening if you don't know the way it works or what's going on. That's the same way I feel with AI for artists or other individual who earns money by the thoughts that are in your mind onto the screen or on the screen, AI is a scary issue because it may take over your work."   Ben Proudfoot, Oscar-winning short directories, found as CEO of Breakwater Studios

Creativity is a fundamental 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. Since then, we've already seen self-identified "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 evolved so rapidly, you'd have a hard time believing that these tools are only a year older.

AI will help you to communicate ideas

Concepts that are complex for films, stories, images or even music are limited by the necessary techniques and abilities required to bring those ideas to life.

In the recent year, pictures like this can be made with a few simple keystrokes:

If you have a proven creator, such as Oscar-winning filmmaker Hashem Al-Ghaili, the possibility is much greater.

Take a look at his AI-generated short film " Last Stand," which depicts how humans would react if aliens were to make contact.

"AI is going to have us look at the world in a way you've never even thought over," says Crystal Edmonds, Head of Accounts as well as Event Activation at Magnet Media Films. "I believe that it's going to open our minds. You'll learn about things that we never even thought we wanted to know about. I think you're going to see people just unlock another dimension of their creativity with AI."

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

Instead of aiming for authenticity the designer deliberately aims for the dream-like aesthetic inherent to Runway's Gen-2. "As a man [that] leave a voicemail for a person who is from the past, he is flooded by fragments of his lost memory and imagines a life that might have been."

Like a true artist, He's adjusted to the weaknesses and strengths of his medium in order to make an original piece.

AI is a great tool to validate and market concepts

Make no mistake, while the examples above are wonderful of how AI can be employed to convey an artistic vision, AI for commercial use is currently it's a novelty.

Check out the AI-generated beer commercial. This commercial is from the time, and it could not be considered to be a legitimate advertisement when it was viewed as a genuine commercial.

It does, however, provide more than enough information in order to convey an idea to executive more effectively than a mood board, sketch, or elevator pitch has ever.

With generative AI means that you no longer have to depend on your words to create an appealing visual for ten or more people: Instead it is possible to utilize a description prompt to create the ideal sizzle film, animatics, or pre-visualizations, to convince viewers to buy into a vision.

What does that mean for creatives today?

Begin to learn how to create an effective prompt for AI.

"I believe that the next generation will be able to master the technologies that are at our disposal and begin 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 lots of opportunities for job growth here, but it will require upskilling our current force as well as the new generation of employees will be able to evolve it."

AI is a great way to save production time

The current video-making process takes an average of two to three weeks from start to finish However, AI is speeding the process, allowing producers to create more original content and allowing production professionals the time to work on projects that requires focused craftsmanship.

"I believe that one of the biggest problems within the industry of film is how expensive it is to create a film. The barriers to entry are high. the entry required to create a film and one important aspect about films is the fact that they are accessible to all," continues Baeza. "So If AI as well as machine-learning tools can help someone who has only a few resources to reach broad audience, it's certainly something to be thankful for, isn't it?"

AI has already made video production easier by automating tasks like editing transcription, personalization and planning. In particular adding or removing items from the background of videos was a painstaking, time-intensive process -- but it does not require Adobe's Geneerative Fill tool.

"I believe organizations will perceive AI as productivity and efficiency improvements," says Baeza. "I believe AI will be incredible partners and probably be embedded inside of creative organizations."

Here's the thing AI won't aid you in.

AI will not help to make you viral.

Machine learning works by crunching previously-used data and analyzing the patterns of what it had previously eaten. For example, a machine learning or generative AI tool can come up with a beautiful picture of a blue-colored cup, based on the thousands of images it has taken of blue cup.

But creativity isn't about repeating what's worked before but rather, it's about framing things in a new way and putting a fresh spin on old ideas, or making a connection which no one else created. In the words of Steve Jobs famously said:

"Some people say give the customers what they want, however that's not what I do. The job of us is to determine what customers are likely to need prior to giving them what they want. I believe Henry Ford once said, 'If I'd ask the customers what they were looking for, they would've told me the fastest horse.' People don't know what they're looking for until you present it to them. It is our job to translate 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 when it comes to the science aspect of that equation.

There are some patterns that are repeatable and formulaic that we follow in our industry and which AI can replicate, such as the rule of thirds, or using a large red font when promoting a sale. But so far, AI isn't able to be forward-looking: it can't account for virality or identify an innovative, new perspective that consumers will appreciate.

Creatives have good news. Differentiate yourself with creative ideas and use AI to help bring the ideas into reality.

AI cannot duplicate the artistic process

One of the wonderful things about the creative process is that -- regardless of whatever the level of detail your concept is, your concept becomes a reality of its own as it's developed. Each person who comes in contact with your idea brings their own perception and vision to the idea, and the finished result has an aspect that you couldn't have predicted.

A film editor I worked with once said, "You might have shot your storyboard, but your storyboard isn't really relevant anymore and I'm just going to use the footage I've got." Although everything was shot as planned within the storyboard, this film editor could highlight certain details or edit things in a way which was different from the initial plan.

Currently, I don't see a way for AI to duplicate the creative process in that way.

It doesn't have a unique perspective that it could add to the process in the same way that a specific film editor or videographer might. Therefore, even when AI is utilized during the process of creation -- to speed up the process of ideation and editing humans still play a role in the creative process.

Stay curious and keep an open mind

The throughline is that AI could increase our capacity to communicate our vision, and it's a catalyst for a new generation of artists to be born and do feats we would've never dreamt of. If I had to capture this moment in words that would describe the moment, it would be excited and nervous since unlike any other time for long while, we're looking into the unknown.

Really though, I'm just an individual with a single set of thoughts and opinions. I believe we must continue investigating the possibilities with a sense of fun curiousity, and keep an open mind and continue the dialogue.

And, if you're curiouswhat do you think of where you are? Which are the ways you're using AI now, and where do you believe it will take us?