Debating the Future of Filmmaking: Can AI Break (or Truly Remake) Hollywood?
Debating the Future of Filmmaking: Can AI Break (or Truly Remake) Hollywood?
https://www.cnet.com/tech/can-ai-tech-break-remake-hollywood/
Publish Date: 2026-06-12 06:01:00
Source Domain: www.cnet.com
Everyone is talking about AI, whether they want to or not. Every day, it feels like there’s a news story about how the tech is improving/ruining our lives, and many conversations about artificial intelligence either come from a place of deep fear or heightened optimism.
As someone who works in entertainment, I’ve been wondering if these reactions reflect the actual state of the technology that’s out there. Well, as I learned during this year’s AI on the Lot, the world’s biggest conference focused on AI in media, the disconnect is significant — and the means to bridge the gap from fear to understanding, and potentially acceptance, are lacking.
The event, which drew roughly 2,500 attendees throughout its three-day run, took place near (and partially on) the backlot of Amazon MGM Studios in Culver City, California. I was there for one day, but that was enough time for me to experience the product hype and techno-optimism firsthand. (The persistent worries about human replacement and environmental damage were rarely mentioned.)
One thing you should know about me: I’m a card-carrying member of the performers’ union SAG-AFTRA and, just a few years ago, I joined the strike that raised red flags about the non-consensual use of generative AI in entertainment. Now, here I was — an AI skeptic, an actor, a CNET journalist — entering the belly of the beast.
Recent films like Hell Grind, which made waves at Cannes, and Dream of Violets, which sparked controversy for being the first full-length AI-made movie to be featured at Tribeca, show the direction movie-making may be heading: quicker, cheaper productions with fewer humans involved.
I wanted to change my mind about the state of the entertainment industry and AI’s potential to improve Hollywood’s overall operations. By day’s end, I left feeling even more conflicted.
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