A new report on artificial intelligence in the entertainment industry has discovered that more than 130,000 movie and TV scripts have been used to train generative AI models, describing it as a “threat” to the “screen sector.”
As AI infiltrates our lives, the debate over its use in art has been raging on, reaching new heights with the actors’ and writers’ strikes in 2023. At home viewers have made it clear they do not approve, with major and smaller productions facing backlash for utilizing the tech.
Movie marketing campaigns like Megalopolis and Thunderbolts, and TV shows such as True Detective have all faced backlash for incorporating AI into their content. In anime, Crunchyroll walked back on plans to use AI for the creative process, leading to celebration from fans.
But the deeper issue may be this: there’s no clear regulation. Studios and tech companies are forging ahead in a legal grey zone, with the British Film Institute (BFI) highlighting the risks in its new report, ‘AI in the Screen Sector: Perspectives and Paths Forward’.
Report raises generative AI concerns in TV and movie production
The report, created as part of the BFI’s partnership with the CoSTAR Foresight Lab, highlights the issue of generative AI – a type of AI that focuses on creating new data based on existing data – when applied to copyrighted material.
An example of this is the AI image generator trend on ChatGPT, which saw swaths of people creating images in the style of Studio Ghibli founder Hayao Miyazaki.
“The existing training paradigm for generative AI models poses a threat to the fundamental economics of the screen sector and its ability to create value from making and commercialising new IP,” it states.
Researchers found that AI companies are training generative models using more than 130,000 scripts, including of movies and TV shows, enabling them to absorb the structure and language of screen storytelling through exposure to text, images, and video.
These models can then reproduce similar structures and generate new content at a fraction of the cost and effort required to create the original works.
“These learned capabilities can be used to assist human creatives, but AI tools may also be used to compete against the original creators whose work they were trained on,” it continues.
While the report does highlight the benefits of generative AI to help drive efficiency, open up new possibilities, and stimulate creativity, there are a number of steps to be taken to ensure its appropriate use.
“Based on an analysis of the insights in this report, it is clear that in all of the most likely scenarios, the sector will have to navigate a number of key barriers and opportunities that are already present, or developing quickly,” it says.
“Using a strategic analysis, we present these barriers and opportunities as a nine-point strategic roadmap for the sector.”
Among its recommendations is the call for upskilling the workforce with AI-complementary skills, as well as creating guidelines to reduce the tech’s carbon footprint and empowering independent creators to utilize AI in their work.
While the report is UK-focused, the implications stretch far beyond the country. AI is being rapidly integrated into film and television industries across the US and around the world, often without clear rules or protections in place.
As a result, the same concerns raised in the BFI’s findings – from copyright infringement to the devaluation of creative labor – are playing out on a global scale, with calls for regulation growing louder in every market.
For more, read about whether The Brutalist used AI, Lionsgate’s new AI plan, and Google’s Veo 3 AI video generator.
