New Delhi: Hollywood is not able to decide what to do with generative AI in filmmaking. Oscar-winning director Martin Scorsese recently joined AI startup Black Forest Labs as an advisor, a company that specialises in image generation. He referred to AI as a painter who can bring his imagination to life on a canvas, while explaining the problems he faces while creating scenes.
“No one on the set over the last 45 years knows what the picture in your head is. There’s always been that problem of what you see in here,” Scorsese said in a video posted by the AI startup on YouTube.
Black Forest Labs is a German-based firm founded by Robin Rombach, Patrick Esser, and Andreas Blattmann.
In the video, Scorsese explained what he needed for a scene, before the startup’s Flux model storyboarded it. He, in a statement, also said that he used the technology during the production of his upcoming film. This technology enables a person to create a film verbally, which can then be translated into a film with 50 people on set, he said.
“You know, this conveys a cinematic intelligence…. that’s the great thing about this tool,” he added.
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Technology and filmmaking
Scorsese has always explored the intersection of technology and filmmaking, such as using 3D modelling for Hugo (2011) and de-aging technology for The Irishman (2019), to create an immersive experience for audiences.
“Remember, cinema is a young medium, only around 125 years old, so we have to be open to how it can evolve,” he said.
The debate around the use of AI has intensified after the 2023 strike by the Writers Guild of America, when writers and actors raised concerns about studios replacing humans with AI tools.
While Steven Spielberg has a different stance on the use of AI. On a recent podcast with Michelle Obama, he talked about how AI cannot replace human emotion. He said he didn’t want any interference from a computer language model in his filmmaking process and that he did not believe AI would replace human intellect and creativity.
“I don’t believe there is any substitute for the soul. I don’t think that’s an algorithm that is inventible…don’t tell me where the camera has to go,” he said.
(Edited by Aamaan Alam Khan)