From obstacles to opportunities: the positive impact of AI on film-making

IOL News

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Young film-makers are being hailed for their use of technology in making movies like 'Disaster Holiday' which won four Simon 'Mabhunu' Sabela Awards this past weekend.
Image: File
Young film-makers and content creators are on an upward trajectory, thanks to advances in technology and artificial intelligence that have helped remove obstacles in their path.
It is a sentiment shared by many, including Jackie Motsepe, COO of the KwaZulu-Natal Tourism and Film Authority, and legendary South African film-maker Angus Gibson, who was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award at its Simon 'Mabhunu' Sabela gala function at the Durban International Convention Centre this past Saturday.
Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, filmmaker Angus Gibson, pictured with Dr Sibusiso Ndebele, chairperson of the KZNTAFA board.
Image: Supplied
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Motsepe told "Independent Media Lifestyle" that the calibre of entrants in this year's awards - in its twelfth year - stands out, and she attributed this to technological advances and the dedication of mentors who have helped hone the skills of newcomers who are enlisted into the authority's internship programme, which takes in 30 trainees each year.
"They are making content through their own devices, and every single day, people in KwaZulu-Natal are working on productions, so we're seeing sharpened skills, whether in acting or script writing," she said.
Gibson, who received the Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to the growth and depth of African storytelling and groundbreaking work on productions such as "Yizo Yizo", "Shaka iLembe" and countless documentary features, went a step further, saying that digital technology had democratised the industry.
"I have a theory that digital media, the video camera you're using right now, has kind of democratised the process of film-making, it is no longer an elite thing," he said.
Rethabile Ramaphakela and the cast of 'Disaster Holiday' accept the award for Best Feature Film at the Simon 'Mabhunu' Sabela Awards.
Image: Supplied
Rethabile Ramaphakela, who accepted the Best Feature Film Award for "Disaster Holiday", which she wrote and directed, added: "I definitely think technology has changed things.
"When I was at film school, I didn't have a phone that had high-quality enough to make content. Even now, with TikTok, creatives are n making their own stories.
"Technology has helped, but on the other side, we have AI coming in and we're not too sure what that means for jobs, so it is a little scary.
"But what I always say is that the heart of a film can never be recreated by a computer or machine. Human beings make hearts, and they can't replicate that," she said.
During a webinar on Wednesday, hosted by Russian media outlet Sputnik, its AI Project Head, Egor Arkhipov, made the point that video content production has been made so much faster through AI, freeing up creatives to spend more time on flexing their imagination instead of tedious research, rendering and editing.
"When we look at the history of us as homo sapiens, there has always been shifts and technological advances that have neutralised certain types of work to be needless, and new types of jobs have opened up," he said, adding that AI creates opportunities for people to be more imaginative, while they leave the "heavy lifting" to artificial intelligence.