The Day AI Wins the Palme d'Or at Cannes

# Last year, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) went on strike to resist the reality of generative artificial intelligence (AI) unauthorizedly learning from screenwriters' works. The Screen Actors Guild?American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), representing Hollywood actors, also joined the strike, fearing that AI-generated actors could replace them. One might have imagined AI-made films winning the Palme d'Or at Cannes or Best Actress at the Academy Awards. Moreover, Netflix ignited controversy by hiring AI managers with high salaries. The strike, which lasted over four months, paused after a tentative agreement was reached to regulate AI-assisted screenwriting and strengthen actors' rights of publicity. The "dream factory" resumed operations after securing promises for minimum wage increases and higher streaming platform residuals, but copyright issues do not seem to have been fully resolved.

# Last month, a film scheduled to be screened at a theater on Soho Street in London was suddenly canceled. Some audience members protested in front of the theater, claiming that screening a film with a screenplay written by artificial intelligence was an insult to directors and actors. This theater had been sustaining the legacy of independent cinemas for 60 years in London’s West End, primarily screening classic films, art films, and films from the Third World, amidst many cinemas and musical theaters. As the audience's reaction turned from coldness to protest, the theater replaced the film with another title.

# Last week, the 28th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival concluded. The stars of the festival were neither actress Son Ye-jin, director Doo Ki-bong, nor the monolith from the film "2001: A Space Odyssey." The Bucheon Film Festival, which has led the way in embracing new technologies such as VR and XR films and introducing them to audiences, focused this time on AI. A three-day AI filmmaking workshop was held, and the works created there went straight to the screening rooms. Creation and screening happened almost simultaneously. The audience was enthusiastic. It sounded like a cheer for the arrival of an era where hidden talents, marginalized by massive capital, shine.

The emergence of AI is shocking, and its speed is astonishing. It transcends the stages and processes of film creation, producing what we call sci-fi films as if they were documentaries. The three expressions seen in London, Hollywood, and Bucheon?whether a "realistic compromise" or an "emotional rejection"?all lead to the final stage of this process: "active (or forced) acceptance," a fact we know.

The final stage in the filmmaking process, editing, is a time for reflection. At least, it has been so far. After shooting, filmmakers watch the unfinished film and reconsider camera angles, lighting brightness, musical harmony, and actors' performances. They cut out the wrong parts and splice together the good ones. AI films skip this process and stage. From the moment creation is completed, the time until screening is shortened to the shortest distance. Film is an art that combines literature, painting, and music with science.

If this is the case for film, what about other fields of art? The famous three stages of a cinephile, as described by journalist-turned-director Fran?ois Truffaut, are: first, watching the same film twice; second, writing about films; and third, making films oneself. Many directors have indeed become filmmakers by going through these stages, but now it seems things must change. The first is writing a screenplay with AI. The second is making a film with AI. The third is increasing "likes" and "subscriptions." This is a fact disguised as a joke and a serious truth that sounds like a joke.