Guillermo del Toro speaks up on AI and threats to creative freedom
Los Angeles, June 17
Filmmaker Guillermo del Toro is making his love for classic filmmaking public. The filmmaker's innate love of film comes through when he speaks, even when he's sounding off with a dire warning about what is at stake for the film industry.
In the past few years, the film industry has met with several challenges including AI and the forces of business consolidation, reports 'Variety'.
"We are on the verge of image illiteracy. We are on the verge of cinema illiteracy", he told the industry crowd gathered Monday night for the BFI America dinner event held in Hollywood to celebrate del Toro's selection for the prestigious BFI Fellowship kudos.
As per 'Variety', the Oscar-winning director, who is known for 'Pan's Labyrinth', 'Hellboy', 'The Shape of Water' and last year's 'Frankenstein', sounded the alarm about the encroachment of AI in what has heretofore been the thoroughly human-led process of making art.
The human desire to express oneself is as old as the first images crafted on ancient cave walls in antiquity, he stressed. He also nodded to the rising tide of political polarization that threatens creative freedom around the world. "The agreement between man and image is sacred", he told the starry crowd at Mother Wolf. Art can help bring people together, he said, "but we are in a time when that is in danger". He called artificial intelligence a form of "natural stupidity".
"We are told images can be generated by artificial means. The existence of an image is not just to be there. It is to connect us, to make us feel beauty", he shared.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Finally someone said it! The way big studios are shoving AI down our throats is scary. Even here, I've seen some so-called 'smart' editors who rely on AI to generate content. But where's the art, man? Where's the human touch? Del Toro is absolutely right about 'image illiteracy'. We are losing the connection between the artist and the audience 😔
Guillermo del Toro is a legend and his words carry weight. The 'natural stupidity' line is brilliant. We're letting machines dictate creativity when they can't even understand what makes us human. I hope Hollywood and Bollywood both take this seriously before it's too late.
I love how he talks about the 'agreement between man and image'. It's like what they say in our traditions about art being a reflection of the divine - the artist pours their soul into it. AI can copy, but it can never feel. But at the same time, let's remember that technology has democratized filmmaking too. Maybe we need balance? Just saying 🤔
While I respect del Toro's passion, I think he's being a bit alarmist. AI is a tool, like a camera or editing software was once new. The real threat isn't AI itself, but the corporate greed that uses it to replace artists. In India, we need more independent filmmakers, not less. Blaming technology alone won't solve the problem.
His point about political polarization is spot on. In the US and India both, we see art being censored or attacked for not fitting a
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