Over the past year, Artificial Intelligence has made considerable advances. I did not become aware of how far along these technologies were until late February. And I am locked in now.
I went back and watched Time Bandits a few days after it became clear that the AI vs manmade debate was also about to kick off. Why watch that film? A) I love Time Bandits and B) HandMade Films produced the movie. The name of that company and the look of Time Bandits are symbiotic, they go together like white on rice.
There are many angles on how AI will affect all forms of art. My particular angle is as a writer and world creator. While I can envision and put into words fictional worlds that would not exist without me, I cannot for the life of me draw much more than a stick figure. So, for me, to be able to relay story information and visual reference material as examples to create something new is super exciting.
The fact that AI can also create text is disheartening. When I saw a news segment on the advancement of AI and the jobs it may take, Screenwriter was fourth on the list. My heart sank. I visited my buddy Scott, who is a painter and graphic artist. He is worried about it from his side as well. We have worked on projects together before, but something we had always talked about doing but never had the time to do was creating a Graphic Novel together.
Having only become aware of the extent of these AI advancements, it seems that a Graphic Novel or at least a novel or novella with several AI created, but Aaron and Scott guided, images that enhance the experience could be worth further investigation.
Ultimately, early AI will fall short in some way if I try and aim higher. Higher being animated or life-like characters in a show or movie created around my writing. Animation on command would be amazing and give me another new way to tell my tales and also allow me to bypass all the barriers between script and viewer.
I am not sure I am on board with the life-like work AI can create using deepfake technology. That is a recipe for disaster beyond the realm of art. The world is not all sunshine and flowers after all. Maybe we should save that technology for if there is ever a time when there is no more sunshine and flowers and we'd like to imagine ourselves frolicking amongst them. Good luck!
I'd like to expand what I am able to create on my own. Adding visuals to my words would be like magic. People will be coming at this technology from so many different angles. Me with my words. Scott with his creative vision. Then there are the content creators for social media who have already begun making stuff. What about the movie and TV directors and the producers, how are they going to affect the landscape? What about actors? And all the crew?
The best directors should continue to dominate the creative landscape. The rest of us will just keep trying to do our best to make our own way. I can't see myself stopping writing just because AI can create cookie-cutter scripts. That has never been my style anyway. Trying to make the next CSI has never been a goal of mine. But if I could get AI to help me plot a second season of a series based on my own work then that is something else altogether. I look forward to the time AI can work together with me in a productive way.
Hopefully, AI won't then take over the world and enslave us. But if I can work with it before that happens then at least there would be that.
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