Let's Talk About AI

If you are at all involved in the film world you’ve probably noticed that over the last couple of years, conversations about AI tend to fall into a few different camps. Aaaaand, similar to our political environment, the conversation can seem somewhat polarizing at times.

There are filmmakers who have fully embraced it and are using it every chance they get. There are filmmakers who won't touch it under any circumstances and are VERY vocal of their disdain for it. And then there are plenty of people somewhere in the middle—curious, cautious, optimistic, skeptical, or simply trying to figure out where they stand. I’ve found that a lot of these folks aren’t really talking about it too much, which is why I thought it would be a good conversation to start.

Here's the thing: I don't think any of those positions are inherently wrong.

Technology has always played a part in creative industries and continues to challenge (both positively and negatively) what we can do and the results we get from it. What’s great is that every filmmaker has the right to decide what role, if any, AI should play in their work. Those boundaries are personal. They’re creative. They’re ethical. Most important: They’re yours to define.

• Don't let social media define them.

• Don't let YouTube define them.

• Don't let fear define them.

• And don't let the hype define them either.

Stay curious. Learn. Experiment if you choose to. Decide what aligns with your own values and creative process. Those boundaries belong to you.

If you've followed me for a while, this probably won't surprise you.

I've always been fascinated by technology—not because technology is the goal, but because I'm interested in how it can help solve problems, make life easier, and improve outcomes. A couple of years ago I spent a significant amount of time exploring data science and AI, because I wanted to better understand where this technology was heading and how it might affect the creative work I care about.

That curiosity eventually found its way into HAPTIC.

Yes, AI was used in the making of the film. Some of it was visual, some of it was organizational, and some of it helped me solve production problems that simply would not have had practical solutions within the resources I had available.

But here's what AI didn't do:

• It didn't write the story.

• It didn't direct the actors.

• It didn't stand in for the crew.

• It didn't decide what belonged in the film.

• It didn't replace the hundreds of creative decisions that happen while making a feature.

Those decisions were mine.

Over the coming months, I'd like to pull back the curtain a little.

This isn't going to be a series about prompt engineering or trying to convince anyone that AI is the future of filmmaking (I honestly don’t think it is, to the extent of some of the conversations out there).

It's also not going to be a series arguing that filmmakers should or shouldn't use AI.

Instead, I want to document exactly how I used it while making HAPTIC:

• What worked.

• What didn't.

• Where it saved time.

• Where it actually created more work.

• Where I think it has tremendous value.

• Where I think we should be extremely careful.

• And where I drew my own ethical boundaries.

  
  

I also want to talk about something that I think often gets lost in these conversations: your moral compass.

Every new technology presents choices.

Just because something can be done doesn't automatically mean it should be done.

As filmmakers, we make creative and ethical decisions every day. AI is simply another place where those decisions matter. Use the tools that help you tell your stories, but do it thoughtfully. Understand what you're using. Understand the implications. Respect the people around you. And don't surrender your judgment simply because a tool makes something easier.

Independent filmmaking has always been about solving problems creatively.

Sometimes that's finding a location you can afford.

Sometimes it's rewriting a scene on site because of time contraints.

Sometimes it's figuring out how to create something you could never have afforded otherwise.

For me, AI became one more tool in that toolbox. AI was not the filmmaker - Just another tool.

If you're interested, I'd love for you to follow along over the next few months.

I'll be sharing the good, the bad, the successes, the failures, and the lessons I learned while making HAPTIC. My hope isn't to tell you what to think about AI. It's simply to contribute my real-world experience to a conversation that's often much louder than it is practical.

Wherever you land on AI, my encouragement is the same:

• Tune out the noise.

• Stay curious.

• Keep learning.

• Define your own creative boundaries.

• And NEVER let someone else define them for you.

That's your job.