Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 777 Is AI + Film and Television a Potential Prospect?
The acquisition of LeEco has settled a major matter; the next step is to address the financing and development of the new platform.

The first major problem that came to Li Qiutang's mind was the conflict between the production company and the platform.

Whether it's Autumn Pictures or Century Autumn, they definitely won't obediently contribute their content to the new platform in the initial stages.

Why should I give you money just because you ask? Do you contribute more than other platforms? I also have a large group of people to support.

This is an inherent contradiction between the two sides' positions, which cannot be eradicated. All Li Qiutang can do is try her best to reconcile them.

But we don't need to think that far ahead now. The handover will take some time, and we can consider these things after the new platform is officially operational.

Li Qiutang is currently writing a report for the ministry to refer to.

It wasn't that he was asked to write about science fiction films and the film industry, but rather that the ministry had accurately observed that film and television capital was receding. Top-tier films could still sell well, but the industry as a whole was declining, leaving many mid-tier and grassroots practitioners without a livelihood.

If the largest number of people at the grassroots and middle levels collapse, then the top level will naturally have nothing to eat.

The relevant authorities have a clear understanding of the situation, so they pooled their wisdom and invited various individuals, both official and non-official, to conduct industry analysis and provide a preview for the ministry's reference, facilitating the next step in policy formulation.

Five years ago, Li Qiutang would have written about vigorously developing blockbuster films, using big budgets, big stars, and big special effects to attract audiences to cinemas. This was Han Dong's strategy, and the past ten years have proven that Han Dong was right.

But at the crossroads of 2019, Li Qiutang decided to take a different approach.

In his report, he made two suggestions to the relevant authorities. First, he recommended vigorously developing the AI ​​industry. Technological development will not be halted by industry obstacles. Film and television professionals do not want to be replaced by AI, but they must admit that a large portion of them will be replaced by AI in the future.

In his report, Li Qiutang used three representative AI tools—video generation, audio generation, and intelligent editing—as examples to boldly predict the revolutionary impact these tools would have on the industry.

“We are far behind in the traditional film industry and it is really difficult to catch up. But AI + film and television are still being explored or even started in many countries. We are not much different from foreign countries and should make plans in advance.”

The second suggestion is to vigorously develop medium-length dramas, short dramas, and mini-series. Li Qiutang is a film director, but he doesn't only look at the issue from a film perspective; rather, he considers the entire film and television industry. In an era of diversified entertainment, whether it's film or television, its competitors are other forms of entertainment.

Chinese dramas and mini-series are not new concepts. Chinese dramas and mini-series are well-developed in Europe, America, Japan, and South Korea, and occupy a large share of their respective markets.

There are only a dozen or twenty episodes, each lasting twenty or thirty minutes, with the longest being only forty or fifty minutes. Sherlock Holmes only has three episodes per season, each lasting 90 minutes.

China does have its own examples; there are shows like "I Love My Family" and "The Idle Man Ma Dajie," each episode of which is only 20 minutes long.

Such dramas have a faster pace and are more likely to keep viewers engaged.

Furthermore, such dramas heavily rely on the creativity of the production team, resulting in significantly lower costs compared to longer series. In terms of production quality, small and medium-sized companies simply cannot compete with large companies, but if such dramas are well-executed, it's not impossible for them to surpass even the big productions of large companies.

Li Qiutang mainly mentioned these two points. As for virtual filming, digital assets, and developing revenue streams beyond box office revenue, these are all well-worn topics and don't need to be specifically mentioned by Li Qiutang.

The report was less than a thousand words long. After finishing it and checking for typos, Li Qiutang sent it out.

Then he continued to immerse himself in his game while his wife went to film a movie. Now no one was competing with him for the game console.

Unexpectedly, on Friday, Li Qiutang received a call from a secretary in his department, asking him to come to the office the next day. "The leader read your report and found it very interesting, and wants to talk to you about it. The leader will be back tomorrow, so come over."

He also told Li Qiutang, "The leader really liked the AI ​​part you mentioned, and we'll focus on it tomorrow. Are you in Yanjing?" "Yes, I've been resting at home."

The secretary couldn't resist teasing him: "You've got 60 billion, and you still manage to hide away and rest. You're something else."

Li Qiutang said, "I've already made 60 billion, and they still won't let me rest. That's too much."

After exchanging a few jokes, we hung up the phone.

No special instructions are needed. In this kind of meeting, anything goes; the conversation is about industry technology and development, and there won't be any taboos.

In fact, AI is not new these days. Baidu shouted the slogan "ALL IN AI" back in 2017, and various Internet companies have also made arrangements in the field of AI. Local governments have also introduced various support policies.

Even intelligent editing and special effects generation have been implemented both domestically and internationally. Li Qiutang is not the first person to make such a prediction, but he is the first person to be so bold as to say that AI will revolutionize the film and television industry and cause many practitioners to lose their jobs. The key point is that he himself is a director, and revolutionizing the film and television industry would be detrimental to him in every way.

What intrigued the leader was his bold prediction about generative algorithms in the report, given that no company, domestic or international, has yet explored this area in terms of AI tools currently in use.

What the leaders were more curious about was why a film director like you had such a deep understanding of these things. They were also very curious about him as a person.

“There’s nothing we can do about it, it’s all harmful and not beneficial at all. That’s just how I see it,” Li Qiutang told her superior.

He didn't want to admit that AI really had a very high chance of revolutionizing film and television, but that was the reality, and there was no room for excuses.

"What AR and VR couldn't do, AI is very likely to do."

However, the competition in AI is essentially a competition for data, chips, and industrial supply chains, and it is no longer a competition of comprehensive national strength.

The leadership has long been aware of this, so there's no need for Li Qiutang to presume to offer his expertise. Today, we'll only discuss the impact of AI on the film and television industry.

"It's immature now, but what about later? AlphaGo's data updates so quickly. AI needs to iterate. It could take a year, two years, three years, or five years. Who knows what it will be able to produce?"

"At least during the production stage, AI will eliminate a large number of people. First, there will definitely be less need for special effects engineers. Then, AI + virtual shooting + digital assets can eliminate set design. This can significantly reduce the cost of big special effects films."

This viewpoint was endorsed by the leader, but he also said, "But a play always needs someone to direct it and someone to act in it."

But Li Qiutang said, "AI will also replace directors and actors, especially actors, who are too easy to replace."

"Actors are unreliable." For a director to say such a thing could be considered outrageous, but acting is his profession. "Actors can never achieve that reality; they can only achieve relative reality. But relative reality is fake. Acting is fake. That's why we say movies are about creating dreams. Dreams are fake."

"Stanislavsky perfected his acting theory in his later years and proposed the physical rehearsal method of acting because he realized that the actor's emotions and experiences are unreliable, and the actor can never truly become the dramatic character. Therefore, physical rehearsal is needed to fix the performance and achieve a stable performance output."

"AI can't portray depth or melancholy. How do you know it can't generate it? If it can't generate it in one take, you can keep adjusting it until you're satisfied. Actors get tired, but AI doesn't. Let's not talk about AI, just look at animated films. These are made frame by frame by animators, right? Would there be any problems with the performances in animated films? 'Monkey King: Hero Is Back' sold 10 billion yuan, surpassing 90% of live-action films."

This is the potential impact of AI on the future of film and television. Li Qiutang explained his views clearly, but how the leaders formulate policies is beyond his control.

(End of this chapter)