Goblins & Humans
Getting cinematic with AI
Hello again from The Colour Bar- thanks for having me in your inbox, or feed, or both.
AI is enabling a certain kind of cinematic storytelling- I am not talking today about Fruit Island or Tiktok AI quickies. I found myself writing many words about how it’s doing this, and wondering what effect it could have on a generation of creative expression. Of course, this came off the back of watching some mildly captivating short films.
But there’s some hand-crafted animated goodness as well this week, so kick back and let some cool visuals and interesting takes wash over you (or is that interesting visuals and cool takes?). Because this is where creativity, entertainment, and tech collide.
You can get every missive here on Substack, or over on Linkedin, if that’s your jam.
Thanks,
Shakey
Goblins & Humans: Where is AI taking cinematic storytelling?
Curated/Cuts: Animated goodness with Loewe and FIFA.
A Poisoned Chalice: Refusing AI for journalism?
➕ · Shapely Levi’s · Crayonish Camelbaks · Resolute govts ·
1. Goblins & Humans
Where AI is taking cinematic storytelling.
Stories can be told in so many ways, that is part of the beauty of creative expression. Each individual will have their own way or bringing a story to life. Their expression will be shaped by a thousand different elements and experiences. The narrative will be shaped in ways that can be inspired, referenced, wholly original to their consciousness or- mostly- some amalgamation of all of these.
The medium is instructive, in how storytelling can come together. One of the most fascinating, rewarding, humbling aspects of much of the creative work with video- short, long, very short- that I have done over the years? The collaboration, without a shadow of doubt. Seeing a seed grow into a sapling with different water and soil and light. Seeing an idea blossom as it is touched by writer, director, actor, editor, designer, musician.
I sometimes wonder what is to happen to that village of creativity, as so many around me drift toward the powerful allure of generative AI. One powerfully creative mind, with a fine grasp on the tools and services at our disposal, can create (generate) a version of their story, their idea, their seed. Their ability with these tools is enhanced by the happenstance of the technology. With an actor, a musician, an art director, a DoP that kind of additive layer can be classified as a ‘Je ne sais quoi’- something inexplicable, indescribable, intentful that they specifically bring to the process. What the tool and its technology brings is also unclassifiable, mercurial even, yet dissimilar- it is absent intent. It adds to the creator’s vision through a chance collision of bits and bites.
I have found myself at the inception of a new thing where there are no rules. _Zak London
As the actual output from some of the more crafted, hard working, ambitious gen AI projects gets better every month, the gaps narrow. (I am setting these aside from demos and social media hype clips that promise apocalypse or new dawns). These are the kind of projects where there is a strong, distinct germ of vision, almost always from one individual. (The space is also dominated by sci-fi and fantasy, allowing for the ‘unreal’ to work better). As more such projects start to appear, the gap both narrows and becomes more particular. Tell-tale hallucinations, errors, poor renders- these will be brushed aside in time.
What remains? One vision and its generative friends.
Pinning down the gaps, or ‘what’s missing’ will becomes less obvious, more intangible. Much like real creative work review and editorial judgement has always been. I find myself looking at promising, alluring ideas, depicted in increasingly assured, solid ways… and at the same time I find myself missing the eyes of a human actor. Quite literally.
This was most evident to me recently in The Patchwright, a successful short from Gossip Goblin. I am reluctant to sweep this into a bucket of easily generated AI shorts, and it clearly has resonated with many viewers - besides the 12m views, have a browse through the comments. The cyberpunk imagery is striking, of that there is little doubt; the plot and flow less so. Director/Founder Zak London says they “adapt to the limits of AI acting.”
Then, there is The Chronicles of Bone, where a solo creative- Kavan the Kid- has been supported by AI platform Magnific (formerly Freepik) to launch a fantasy series that draws upon available IP characters like King Arthur and Peter Pan and Robin Hood (and vampires, because why not). The world building is promising, the writing stilted, the character acting amateurish, even in comparison to Patchmaker. Note, I take these two as examples, and don’t mean a direct comparison is necessarily meaningful here. Both though, look to build ‘IP’ with shorts, character intros, ‘prologues’, and then longer pieces of about ~20min.
Cinema is a young medium, only around 125 years old, so we have to be open to how it can evolve. _Martin Scorsese
I am prepared- in the interest of a creative discussion and with a nod to a rising inevitability of it all- to set aside for a time the more fundamental debates around provenance, copyright and ownership.
Even with those conveniently ignored, I can’t help but feel that what the human aspect brings can be so easily, glibly, carelessly sidelined by such technology. As a new generation of creative minds is shaped, grows up, learns, I wonder if we stand to lose what their imagination and expression could bring. I say lose, because it is that formative creative growth could be funneled into something more derivative, less collaborative, missing the same level of emotional intent. Again- and crucially- not from the sole individual, but from the missing collaborators.
Of course, Gossip Goblin describes that “every story is imagined, written, and directed by humans”, AI is only their ‘force multiplier’. This too, is a recurring theme.
“If I could snap my fingers and make generative AI disappear forever, I probably would.” _Kane Parsons
This piece on Zack London and Gossip Goblin is worth reading for a window into that world, even if you don’t play in it just yet, or consume it. Their output is meta-relevant insofar as “the quandary of what it means to be human in a world of ever more powerful technology” is a recurring theme.
Relatedly, veteran French director Mathieu Kassovit was ‘stunned’ to see one of these cybernetic actors with “an emotion in his eyes that made me shiver”.
He also feels, “Fuck copyright,” so there’s that.
Besides making the effort to watch some of the more successful / striking generative AI pieces out there, the other little nudge to this piece came from Kane Parsons, the young director of Backrooms. Clearly in a different corner of the creative internet, the 20 year old self-made Youtube filmmaker’s recent take on AI can essentially be summed up as- thanks but no thanks.
“I think I’m in the same boat as most well-adjusted people,” he said, “If I could snap my fingers and make generative AI disappear forever, I probably would. Creatively, I get no enjoyment from using those tools. It defeats the purpose entirely for me.”
2. Curated/Cuts
Animated goodness.
· Loewe ·
“Craft as an art, imagination as a tool.”
Founded in 1846 in Madrid as a small leather workshop, Loewe is the second-oldest luxury fashion house in the world. For their 180th anniversary, they crafted a hand-painted labour of love.
From Blinkink, and directed by Isabel Garrett, every frame was crafted by hand, with a team of 10 painters across 2000+ sheets of watercolour paper. BTS stuff here.
· FIFA World Cup branding ·
How can we not visit some aspect of the FIFA World Cup? These animations for different venues, done by Buck Studios, are smooth, vibrant, clever and generally fun.
3. A Poisoned Chalice
Last week I wrote about Objections, the AI-powered platform claiming to being truth and accountability to journalism, which many feel is just a way of actually cowering down investigative reporting.
Present day challenges to journalism arent of course limited to platforms challenging their authenticity, but generative AI actively enabling ‘easier reporting’.
Easy can mean better, sure but equally, and often, quite the opposite. Particularly when it comes to speed trumping depth.
I recently read a piece by Marisa Kabas titled “Refusing to accept an AI-poisoned future of journalism”. It is a powerful piece which relates both to that story on Objection, as well as some thoughts similar to Kane Parsons’ shared above in the AI filmmaking essay - more is not always more; having fewer resources is not carté blanche to take short cuts.
Marisa feels that journalism comes with purpose, and the pride accompanying the desire to fulfil it. “The process is the purpose. You don’t have to always like or enjoy the process, but if you don’t respect it enough to do it yourself, there is no purpose.”
One Katarina Brau’s comment brought back some fascinating Isaac Asimov words. In an early story, in 1957, the master wrote about a robot that proofreads ‘galleys’ (the final version of a book to be proofread). In it he wrote:
“‘Your robot takes over the galleys. Soon it, or other robots, would take over the original writing, the searching of the sources, the checking and cross-checking of passages, perhaps even the deduction of conclusions. What would that leave the scholar? One thing only – the barren decisions concerning what orders to give the robot next!”
➕Quick Hits
Levi’s covered its logo in the Levi’s stadium because FIFA said it must. But it still had ‘a win’. But they hid it creatively- the bat-shaped polygon was wrapped in white, making it as or more recognisable, just by the shape. People enjoyed how it drew even more attention to the Levi’s logo.
The UK government is the latest to announce that social media will be banned- for those under 16, starting early 2027- saying it would “go further” than other countries. Low down here and reactions here.
Crayola (crayons people!) and Camelbak (water bottle people!) joined forces to drop some very cool looking happy bottles. “Inspired by creativity and the spirit of the outdoors,” they might have thrilled more adults than children!
