Grateful for Collaborating With Us! Hollywood’s AI Enthusiasts Keep the Momentum Going

While the excitement surrounding industry events is to be expected, summit attendees consistently emphasized that generative AI is not just another fleeting trend, like VR headsets, the “metaverse,” or NFTs. It’s truly groundbreaking.

This insistence reveals an underlying anxiety typical of a gathering celebrating a power-hungry sector facing an energy crisis. This tension is palpable following the discontinuation of a video-generating tool by one of the leading companies in the field and the protests against the data centers essential for enabling this technology.

There was considerable discussion about how AI—despite worries that its numerous “efficiencies” could alter or completely eliminate the roles of those in creative professions—does not undermine human creativity.

Consensus emerged that what AI cannot yet do is “generate” its own ideas. “The origin of creativity is the human mind,” noted EA’s Mihir Vaidya. Adobe’s Hannah Elsakr echoed this sentiment, presenting it onscreen as an equation: (Humanity x Creativity)^AI = Unlimited Possibility. We were reminded that “stories are human,” and in this new realm of limitless opportunity, “human judgment” is crucial. However, AI’s promise of immediate satisfaction overlooks the fundamental essence of human creativity.

Advocates for AI often view humans as idealized, creative engines: primary contributors in an increasingly tech-driven landscape. In reality, creativity is manifested through hard work and the challenge of overcoming obstacles. One learns to play guitar by navigating through Green Day power chords. Writing skills develop through practice, revision, and experimentation with sentence form and structure. Simply thinking about writing won’t teach someone to write, just as imagining a brilliant guitar riff won’t create one. Creativity is not merely a commodity confined to the mind that technology can extract; it’s a skill that requires practice, not just release. The dreaded “gap between imagination and creation” isn’t an inefficiency that a computer can resolve; it’s the very space where creativity is born.

Another persistent concern is the quality of the results. Many of the images showcased at the summit appeared quite terrible. They stood out as noticeably artificial, digital, and lacking humanity. Yet attendees clapped as if they were genuinely impressive. In another session, Rob Wrubel, founder and managing director of AI studio Silverside, boasted about creating a completely AI-generated holiday advertisement for Coca-Cola. Perhaps I’m living in a bubble, but I remember that spot being widely criticized and ridiculed. This, of course, was conveniently omitted from the discussion.

The overwhelming hype made Kennedy’s fireside chat a refreshing dose of reality.

In addition to emphasizing the significance of human qualities like taste and fundamental skills, she recounted instances where technology let her down. Kennedy, who recently stepped down as head of Lucasfilm, recalled a recent Star Wars film—presumably the upcoming The Mandalorian and Grogu—in which 3-D printed props began to fail after a few takes. Since they were not crafted by skilled prop masters, who possess the intuition needed to understand not only how objects look but also how they function, the results were fragile and unsatisfactory.