Film Magic
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said it's “hard to predict” how generative AI will affect Hollywood in the long term, but he still attempted to address the issue.
“I think AI is going to make for amazing creator tools and it's going to be a great way for creators to tell better stories,” Sarandos said during the streamer's second-quarter earnings interview, adding that the business case for generative AI isn't about cutting costs, but about improving the quality of storytelling.
“A lot of filmmakers and producers are experimenting with AI right now,” he said. “They're really excited about how useful a tool it can be. We'll have to see how it develops before we can make any meaningful predictions about what it will mean for anyone. But our goal remains the same, which is to tell great stories.”
His answer was prompted by a question from an analyst. varietyThis week on Netflix's “Strictly Business” podcast, CTO Elizabeth Stone appeared. In the interview, Stone said that the current wave of gen-AI is “an incremental capability of that technology” and that Netflix is looking at how to integrate it into its products to improve member experience, as well as “how we can empower creators and bring their vision to life in even better ways.” Stone revealed that the company is working on the gen-AI project, which she described as an “interactive discovery experience.”
In a Q2 interview, Sarandos said, “One thing is for sure: If you look back at 100 years of entertainment history, you can see how great technology and great entertainment have gone hand in hand to build great businesses.”
Sarandos said there's no need to look any further than animation. “Animation hasn't gotten cheaper. It's gotten better with the transition from hand-drawn to CGI animation,” he said. “And there are more people working on animation today than ever before in history. So I'm convinced that making content 10% better will create a better business — and a bigger business.” [using technology] than [there is in] It's 50% cheaper.”
“I think a show or a movie is successful when it connects with an audience,” Sarandos continued, “be it the beauty of the script, the chemistry between the actors, the surprise of how the story unfolds.” “Audiences probably don't really care about the budget, and maybe they don't even care about the technology that goes into making it happen,” Sarandos added.
Sarandos recently commented on AI in an interview with The New York Times, expressing doubts that AI platforms would replace Hollywood professions such as screenwriting. “I have more faith in humans, I really do. I don't believe that AI programs are going to be able to write better scripts than good screenwriters, I don't believe that they're going to replace good acting, or that you won't know the difference,” Sarandos said. “AI isn't going to take your job. Someone who uses AI well may take your job.”
Also in a second-quarter interview, co-CEO Greg Peters echoed Stone's comments, saying Netflix has been using AI and machine learning to recommend content for years: “We see huge potential in generative AI to further improve our recommendation and discovery systems,” he said.
But Peters also noted that “the key to our success is quality at every level,” starting with great TV shows and movies, and also having a “great, constantly improving recommendation system that unlocks the full value of every story.”
