World Creativity And Innovation Day: Can AI Be More Than Just A Creative Assistant? Anand Pandit Spill Beans

With entire universes being built by machine intelligence, filmmaking is being fundamentally reshaped. Renowned producer Anand Pandit has an interesting take on this phenomenon and says, "Ironically, we still look back at the era of slow film-making as the golden age of cinema. That should tell us something about the power of human creativity, right?" He elucidates further, "This is not to say that AI-driven models are not useful but film-makers should strive towards a balance between creativity and technological innovation."

Expanding on the benefits of new technology, Pandit says, "Emerging technologies are democratising film-making in an unprecedented way. Exciting new talents can tell stories even without massive financial backing and one such example is the animated film 'Flow' which was made with free and open-source software Blender. It even won an Oscar and many more films will continue to challenge the traditional studio-backed model."

He also appreciates the way AI is helping makers to streamline pre and post production processes. He recalls, "During the pandemic especially, many makers relied on virtual production and remote collaboration software to "build worlds" from home or work in reduced-crew environments. We now have easy to use editing tools and an entire film can be conceived and made independently thanks to a drastically lowered budget barrier. Technology can be a useful creative assistant."

It is when technology begins to overpower human creativity that it poses a serious problem, says the producer and explains, "Cinema is a collaborative medium. It is an 'industry' built by millions and to turn over every aspect of filmmaking to Artificial Intelligence, would undermine their blood, sweat and passion. Sure, technology can help us to reimagine existing realities but we should not use it to undermine what we already have; the organic warmth of human creativity."

He says, technology should expand the span of human imagination, not replace it. " No amount of technology can recreate the brilliance of a 'Citizen Kane' or a 'Kagaz Ke Phool' or a 'Pather Panchali.' Do you think an AI generated actor can ever mean to us what Madhubala did or what Mr Bachchan does? Or match the scriptwriting skills of Salim Javed? What makes cinema relatable is that we see ourselves in the stories it tells. Cinema, without a deeply human "heartbeat" or emotional connection, risks feeling like a sterile, virtual video game," he adds.

He also hopes makers will defy the algorithmic safety trap and concludes, "When makers follow their heart rather than the algorithm, their work shines with authenticity and intuition, qualities that metrics, trends, and engagement optimization cannot replicate."