Artificial Production

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing the way we produce and consume video content. One of the most significant impacts of AI in video production is in the area of video editing. AI-powered editing software can analyze footage and automatically select the most compelling shots and transitions, saving time and resources for editors. This technology also allows for more creative freedom, as editors can focus on the artistic aspects of the process.

Another area where AI is making a big impact is in the creation of computer-generated imagery (CGI). With the help of AI, it is now possible to create highly realistic and detailed CGI characters and environments for use in everything from feature films to video games. It is also being used to create virtual and augmented reality experiences, becoming increasingly popular in the video production industry.

AI is also being used to improve the delivery of video content. It can analyze viewer data and personalize the video experience for each individual viewer, leading to higher engagement and retention rates.

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In fact, everything above this was written by OpenAI’s ChatGPT.

Artificial intelligence is no longer a concept that’s five years away. It’s here.

The plethora of recent tools that have come out in the content-creation sphere powered by deep learning are rapidly changing the process by which we make anything.

Jasper.ai (formerly Jarvis.ai) can write ad copy.

Replica can synthesize a realistic voiceover from those words.

Stability.ai can generate images in many styles from text.

Text2LIVE and RunwayML can perform complex visual effects in minutes.

Meta AI is even starting to generate video from a text prompt.

They do this by combining unfathomable quantities of past works into a “turn-this-into-this” command with human feedback until the AI figures out how to dependably create convincing and engaging new works. Does anyone know how? Not really. These “black boxes” are not crafted by human hands, but by unimaginably repetitious iteration in which the AI is told if it’s doing a good or bad job at generating content from it’s dataset. Eventually, it gets dependably good at it.

Even established video production software companies such as Adobe and Blackmagic Design are integrating AI tools to speed up steps in their workflows.

Much of the data fed to these machine learning algorithms are copyright-protected works. Unsurprisingly, a class-action lawsuit has been levelled at Stability.ai and others for training their models on original works by artists. How can you protect the craft you honed if someone completely unskilled can now ask an AI to perform it instead.

Where does this put us in the video content creation industry? Is AI going to take our jobs? For the button-pushers among us who have gotten by on technical skill, maybe. These programs can be invaluable tools, either reducing the amount of time it takes to conventionally produce video, or expanding the capabilities of our storytelling to depths and heights we could only dream of. Instead of thinking of it as there being less work to do, let's see it as an opportunity to create much more with much less effort.

CV