AI tools are great for VFX artists but bode less well for the VFX industry

The intersection of AI and the entertainment industry took centre stage at the recent SIGGRAPH conference in Los Angeles, US, a forum traditionally focused on computer graphics and visual effects.

While the labour disputes involving AI in Hollywood were not overtly discussed in presentations, they were a hot topic in networking events. There is a prevailing concern among industry professionals that AI could replace human jobs, especially those of writers and artists.

At SIGGRAPH, however, the emphasis was on how AI could aid rather than replace human creativity. One notable example was from Pixar, who discussed its latest film, "Elemental," where characters are made up of natural elements like fire, water and air.

Procedural generation, a form of algorithmic content creation, played a crucial role in animating the complex characters. Notably, Pixar used "volumetric neural style transfer" to add an artistic touch to the flames that make up a character named Ember. The technology allowed the flames to match the artist’s vision while being grounded in the “natural” look achieved through simulation. The point made by Pixar was clear: AI was a tool used to enhance the creative process, not replace it.

Another example came from Martine Bertrand, a senior AI researcher at DNEG, a VFX and post-production company. Bertrand emphasised the potential of AI to accelerate time-consuming tasks like style development and environment design, which can often require weeks of back-and-forth between creators and directors. He argued that AI could facilitate a quicker, more effective dialogue between the parties, thereby improving the creative process.

Wonder Dynamics offered an additional perspective on how machine learning could serve artists. The company has developed advanced scene and object recognition models that can quickly replace human actors with 3D models, a task that used to take weeks or months. However, the automation is designed to handle objective tasks, leaving the creative, subjective work to humans.

While the VFX community see the potential benefits of AI, they are also cognisant of the concerns raised by writers and actors. The creatives worry that their skills and livelihoods could be automated away. The consensus among SIGGRAPH attendees was that the risks from AI did not stem from the technology itself but from its potential misuse by uninformed industry leaders. As Bertrand summed it up, the real danger is when humans “defer their responsibilities to machines”.

The through-line at SIGGRAPH was one of cautious optimism. While AI has the potential to revolutionise the film and TV industry by automating mundane tasks and amplifying creative capabilities, it also raises ethical and labour concerns that are the subject of much debate and dispute.

The concerns feel particularly justified considering Hollywood’s notoriously poor treatment of the visual effects industry. There are no shortage of stories of visual effects artists being overworked and underpaid, many of which involving Marvel Studios, despite much of their brand being built on CGI-stuffed blockbusters.

This is also clear at the Oscars, where VFX award winners are given next to no time to speak before being rushed off the stage. In this year’s show, host Jimmy Kimmel had the gall to mock the team from Avatar: The Way of Water after they were given a whole 25 seconds to accept their award.

VFX artists will continue to happily embrace AI tools because innovating new tools and ways to do things is a core feature of the industry. The technical and artistic possibilities of AI should make aspiring VFX artists excited. However, whether the advancements will improve labour conditions for an industry that is often treated with open contempt by its biggest employer seems uncertain at best.

James Browning is a freelance tech writer and music journalist.

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