The brouhaha over the use of AI has been raging for quite a while, and now Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos has chimed in, saying that he doesn’t believe audiences care about whether a piece of media is AI-generated or not, as long as it tells a good story. The use of AI in movies has come under a lot of fire from both those working in the industry and eagle-eyed fans, who have noticed that AI has been used to not only restore old franchises like Jaws, but enhance recent films like Late Night With the Devil and Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.
Speaking on a Netflix quarterly earnings call (via Deadline), Sarandos touched on the use of AI, saying that he believes it’s going to become just another tool in a filmmaker’s arsenal to help them in the creative process.
“I think that AI is going to generate a great set of creative tools, a great way for creators to tell better stories”
Sarandos went on to say that when it comes down to it, he doesn’t believe that the public really cares about whether AI was used to generate something like a background in a movie, as long as the storytelling and chemistry between actors is front and center. For him, it’s all about the plot and surprise twists that make a film great, and not necessarily the tools used in its production.
“It’s in the beauty of the writing, it’s in the chemistry of the actors. It’s in the plot, the surprise twist… I’m not saying that audiences don’t notice all these other [AI] things. But I think they largely care about connecting with the storytelling. And I’d say they probably don’t care much about budgets, and arguably maybe not even about the technology to deliver it.”
Ted Sarandos Points to CGI as an Example of How Movies Got Better Thanks to Technology
Before the creation of computers, the imagination of a filmmaker could only go so far as practical effects would take it. As such, many movies were limited in some regard and filmmakers had to invent technology to bring a vision to life, as was the case with Star Wars. Thanks to the introduction of CGI, however, computers made all things possible, and almost nothing was off limits in this brave new world, including dinosaurs (Jurassic Park) and talking toys, leading to Pixar’s Toy Story becoming the first-ever feature film to be made entirely by computers; the 1995 film grossed a massive $394 million at the box office and gave birth to an entire money-making machine.
Sarandos was eager to point this out on the call, comparing the AI boom to CGI, saying that the new technology not only helped make films better, but created a plethora of new jobs.
“If you look back over a hundred years of entertainment, you can see how great technology and great entertainment work hand in hand. Animation didn’t get cheaper, it got better in the move from hand-drawn to CGI animation. And more people work in animation today than ever in history. So, I’m pretty sure that there’s a better business and a bigger business in making content 10% better than it is making it 50% cheaper.”
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While CGI might have created jobs, the fear in the industry is that AI will do the opposite, and end up replacing actors and screenwriters in favor of auto-generated scripts and characters, leading to the slow demise of Hollywood as we know it. It’s part of the reason for the WGA/SAG-AFTRA strikes of 2023, which may have staved off the advancement of AI for now, but many folks, including George Lucas, say that despite the hesitancy to embrace the new technology, people had better get used to it because it’s here to stay.