Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy detailed why she’s “really excited” about the use of AI in movies, but with one caveat.
The American film producer has been heading the giant company founded by George Lucas since 2012.
Her first film production credit was with Steven Spielberg. ET, The two met again in 1993, jurassic park franchise.
Kennedy then joined Lucasfilm in 2012, initially as co-chairman with Lucas, shortly before Disney acquired the studio for approximately $4.05 billion that same year.
During her reign, she star war Like a sequel trilogy or a standalone movie. rogue one and solo He has overseen a major expansion into television with hits such as . of the mandalorian and Andor On Disney Plus.
After 14 years, she will be handing over the company to Chief Creative Officer Dave Filoni and Executive Vice President Lynwen Brennan.
In a revealing interview with Deadline, the 72-year-old opened up about why she’s leaving the role and what she’s working on next.
Kathleen Kennedy oversaw the television development of Star Wars (Disney)
She also expressed her opinion on highly divisive topics. Expanding use of AI in the film industry.
Kennedy said he had been talking about leaving for “two years.”
“I visited Bob and Alan to work out what the transition plan would be and recommended Dave Filoni and Lynwen Brennan, the latter of whom has been running the business alongside me,” she explained.
Kennedy went on to explain that he is “very interested” in a “new technology” that is emerging: AI.
While AI promises faster and more ambitious creative tools, industry experts across the board are concerned that their work will be used without their consent and that this technology could ultimately undermine jobs, pay and ownership in the creative industries.
President Kennedy is mindful of using AI responsibly (Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images)
But President Kennedy said the move was “really exciting”, although he cautioned that the use of AI needs to be protected.
“I’m interested in exploring the use of these tools in a responsible way and solving complex problems to understand what we’re trying to do in terms of protecting artists’ rights,” she clarified. “That’s extremely important.”
“But at the same time, there’s nothing more exciting than having new tools that allow you to expand what you can do in terms of creating a visual language around a story,” she added.
Citing his decades in Hollywood, Kennedy said he feels nostalgic about the current moment.
She compared the potential of AI to the technological leaps that brought it about. jurassic parkrecalls previous breakthroughs in Industrial Light & Magic.
AI is a controversial topic, especially in Hollywood (David McNew/Getty Images)
It includes what she described as the first CG shot in film, created for the 1985 film. young sherlock holmes.
“It was really thrilling,” she said, adding that years of experimentation and research ensued before CGI reimagined blockbuster filmmaking.
While Kennedy was clear that AI won’t transform every movie, he believes it can be especially powerful for large-scale world-building stories.
“When it comes to big tent pole stories where people are trying to create images that they’ve never seen before, I truly believe this technology will do that,” she said.
“I truly feel that we are entering that moment again…We are going to see things we have never seen before.”
