Have you ever wondered, “Where do grannies go when they get lost?” Or what the planet would look like if we did cut down all the trees?
On Runway second annual AI Film Festivalthese worlds came to life on screen for just a few minutes – representing two of ten finalists for this year’s festival, which received approximately 3,000 applications. The festival accepts submissions of narrative or experimental films that exploit tools based on artificial intelligence, including generative artificial intelligence, in the imaginative process.
Runway CEO and co-founder Cristóbal Valenzuela said it was “stunning” to see videos created using artificial intelligence tools last year – including those from his own company. In his opinion, this year’s films by artists from around the world show “a foretaste of what is to come.”
“As a toolmaker, the best state you can be in is to see someone really talented using your tools in ways you can’t even imagine, and that makes me cheerful; that’s where we started,” Valenzuela, who grew up in Chile and wanted to study directing, told Quartz in an interview. He added that Runway is interested in putting its tools into the hands of as many people as possible. “When you allow someone to do something that makes them feel special, it’s phenomenal.”
Get Me Out – Daniel Antebi, winner of the Grand Prix of the AI Film Festival 2024
Valenzuela founded Runway in 2018 with Alejandro Matamala Ortiz, the company’s chief design officer, and Anastasis Germanidis, its chief technology officer, after meeting at Modern York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. Runway has since done the same research aimed at developing artificial intelligence in creativity and provided tools for various stages of the filmmaking process, from storyboarding to scriptwriting. The company also has its own generative AI models, Gen-1 AND Gen-2, to generate video. Runway’s tools were equal used for visual effects in the 2023 Oscar-winning film, Everything Everywhere Everything at once.
Valenzuela said filmmaking is steep, arduous and time-consuming. Part of what Runway is trying to do is create a future in which “billions of people who have never thought of themselves as artists and filmmakers” have the tools to do what “only a handful of people can do” using conventional techniques .
“I think the impact of any technology is that it democratizes something that was once very steep and inaccessible,” he said.
Valenzuela said that when the company started, it was arduous for people to accept the technology. But now “many more people realize that these are very powerful tools if you know how to exploit them.” He added that Runway is currently working with major studios and production teams and expects this relationship to continue to grow. Valenzuela said a lot has changed since the company was founded, and models are getting better at conveying stories and emotions in the way artists want, and they still have a long way to go.
However, concerns about the exploit of AI in the imaginative industry (and many others) have grown and been central to the discussion Hollywood writers’ strike last summer. Hi agreement reached between writers and studios is that AI cannot “write or transcribe literary material”, AI-generated texts cannot be considered “source material”, and writers cannot be forced to exploit AI in their work unless they want to.
Valenzuela said screenwriters’ concerns about being replaced by artificial intelligence are valid, but have more to do with the way the film industry conducts its business.
“Especially with AI, it’s really vital to start thinking about tasks rather than work,” Valenzuela said. “There are tasks in your job that will be automated, simplified and performed better and faster. If you are a good creator who knows how to exploit these tools, you can exploit them. “I think it’s a better mental model to think about what’s coming and then think about the trade.”
So far, too much attention has been paid to artificial intelligence models, he argued, instead of focusing on the people using and benefiting from the technology and what that would mean if more people benefited from it. Last year’s festival winners found modern jobs and had the opportunity to move around the world, Valenzuela said, adding that technological developments should receive more attention.
“I think we’re reaching a tipping point where it’s less about the technology and more about the people using the technology,” Valenzuela said.
