Use of Artificial Intelligence in Film and Music Sparks Controversy

The logo of theme parks "Disney" store is pictured on the Champs Elysees Avenue in Paris, France, on Sept. 20, 2017. (Francois Mori/AP Photo)

The more human beings learn about the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in creative endeavors like film and music, the more it seems to gain resistance.

That is the conclusion of a week of Hollywood headlines that had entertainment consumers and insiders alike rattled about how the field of AI will work to replace the talent, efforts, and acuity of real-life artists. AI combines computer science and vigorous datasets to enable problem-solving.

Creators Critical of AI in Disney+ Series

One recent incident involves growing backlash against Disney after it was revealed that the studio employed AI to create the opening credits for its new Disney+ Marvel series “Secret Invasion.”

In the case of Disney, criticism grew after a video of the show’s intro went viral on social media, generating conversations about the future of artists in the industry that has since come to a standstill due to the ongoing Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike.

The show’s executive producer Ali Selim told the online publication Polygon that producers worked with Method Studios to create the AI sequence, which developed into a back-and-forth collaboration.

“We would talk to them about ideas and themes and words, and then the computer would go off and do something. And then we could change it a little bit by using words, and it would change.” Selim said. He described the opening intro “explorative and inevitable, and exciting, and different.”

While the series is said to mark the first time that the technology has been employed in mainstream television, not everyone is as enthusiastic as Selim as was witnessed by a slew of negative comments on Twitter.

Tweeted concept artist Jeff Simpson, who worked on the show, “Secret Invasion intro is AI generated. I’m devastated, I believe AI to be unethical, dangerous and designed solely to eliminate artists’ careers,” he said. “Spent almost half a year working on this show and had a fantastic experience working with the most amazing people I ever met. I worked with the Vis Dev team on character design, props, keyframes for the show etc. and nothing to do with the intro which would have been done much later I assume—to clarify.”

That’s as actor/director Stephen Ford also had some choice words.

“Marvel/Disney have infinite money yet used AI for the Secret Invasion opening credits. A slap in the face to literally every artist Disney has ever worked with & something that overshadows the hard work everyone did on this show,” he tweeted.

Said Kelly McKernan on Twitter, “Marvel used AI for the Secret Invasion intro. That *was* a paying job for many artists. Add this to the heap of industry-wide lost work replaced by plagiarism software, aka generative AI. Absolutely disgusting.”

McCartney Walks Back Comments on AI

Another controversy surrounds singer Paul McCartney, who recently revealed that AI was used in a new Beatles song.

McCartney created a dust-up and then had to walk back comments he made in a June 12th BBC interview responding to public speculation following a previous announcement that a “new” Beatles song was created with the help of AI. The story was recounted on Nights With Alice Cooper.

In the interview, McCartney said AI “has great uses,” noting that while making what would be the last Beatles record, they worked on and just finished a demo that John (Lennon) had.

“So, when we came to make what will be the last Beatles record, it was a demo that John had that we worked on and we just finished it up — it‘ll be released this year,” said McCartney, noting that they were able to get Lennon’s voice “pure” through AI so that they could then mix the record as they normally would. “It gives you some, sort of, leeway. So, there’s a good side to it and then, a scary side. And, we’ll just have to see where that leads.”

Later, McCartney took to Twitter to clarify his comments, saying that artificial intelligence was not used in the “new” Beatles song.

“Nothing has been artificially created,” he said. “Been great to see such an exciting response to our forthcoming Beatles project. No one is more excited than us to be sharing something with you later in the year.”

The uses and misuses of AI continue to be debated.

Earlier this year, Hollywood star Keanu Reeves called deepfake digital face edits “scary,” and confirmed that his film contracts ban digital edits to his acting.

“It’s a system of control and manipulation,” said Reeves of AI.