By Joshua Tyler
| Published
If you’ve been on YouTube any time recently, you likely encountered an AI-generated video. The platform has been flooded with them, to the point that human creators report declining viewership because they’re being squeezed out.
There are similar fears on a larger scale when it comes to Hollywood. There’s growing worry that we may not need humans to make movies anymore, and that all anyone will need is an AI prompt.
There’s nothing to worry about. This simple video clip, taken from the set of director James Gunn’s new Superman film, provides all the reassurance you need.
Why does a guy running in circles with a camera mean AI won’t be a problem? It’s not what he’s doing, but why he’s doing it.
Hollywood has robot-operated camera rigs that could have moved the camera smoothly and without fatigue. That’s why the video surfaced. Zack Snyder, who directed the previous Superman movies, would have used one of those mechanized rigs instead, say his fans. In their mind, this clip proves James Gunn is a fool. But actually, it proves he’s a genius.
The problem with Zack Snyder’s Superman movies, and the reason that he’s now unemployed, is that they felt cold and mechanical. Meanwhile, James Gunn’s version has been praised for feeling warm and alive.
What makes a movie feel cold, and what makes a movie feel like it’s a living, breathing element? A camera is a camera, and it’s hard to point out while you’re watching it what it is that makes the difference. This is the difference. It’s people.
That guy getting dizzy adds a human element to the way the movie appears on screen by the organic nature of his movements. No matter how hard he might try, he’ll never be able to maintain a perfectly stable speed. He’ll likely jostle the camera slightly while he runs, and his presence has a subtle effect on the actor being filmed. Unlike a robot rig, he can’t keep that up forever, which forces James Gunn to account for yet another human factor while deciding how long this shot should last.
All these human limitations end up on screen when you watch the movie. You don’t see it, but you feel it. You don’t notice it, but your brain does. That’s something no amount of automation can create.
When we say something is cold and lifeless, we’re saying that it doesn’t feel human. Humans are a self-centered species. Our interest in art begins and ends with its humanity.
People are watching that bad AI slop on YouTube, for now. It’s new. They watched Zack Snyder’s cold and lifeless movies, too. But absent an element of humanity, that kind of inhuman art is a gimmick that eventually wears out its welcome, and soon, only the Slop Eaters will be left consuming it.
Art is only interesting when you can imagine it’s about you and your people. Creating that is something no artificial intelligence can do.
