Directors Meet Explores New Horizons of Crowdfunding and AI
Day 3 Meet the Director Session is all about AI and crowdfunding, factors making way for the creation of exceptional and diverse movies. Young directors in modern cinema are all for the advent of AI in movie-making.
Highlighting the advent of AI at the 29th IFFK, 20-year-old Cyril Abraham Dennis, whose feature debut "Watusi Zombie!" is scheduled for three screenings at this IFFK, voiced his concern over the rapid pace at which AI is taking over human creativity.
In the session moderated by Mira Sahib, Cyril was joined by directors Satish and Santosh Babusenan (Mukhakannadi), Vipin Radhakrishnan (Angammal), Ishan Shukla (Schirkoa: In Lies We Trust), and Abhijith Mazumdar (Body), as well as Amala Popuri, producer of Body, and Omara Shetty, actor in Shameless.
The Babusenan Brothers opined that the definition of creativity will change in the future. According to them, using AI in filmmaking will soon become the norm, and not using it will be seen as old-fashioned. However, Vipin Radhakrishnan commended AI's capabilities in the technical aspects of movie-making.
The discussion also explored alternative funding methods and production possibilities in new-age filmmaking. Ishan Shukla noted that film markets, though complicated, can be helpful in finding international collaborators. Omara Shetty shared her experience of facing severe financial constraints and the support she received from four countries. Amala Popuri shared her experiences with her successful crowdfunding model, highlighting it as another viable alternative. The discussion covered ways to accumulate funding and explained the supportive technologies and government incentives available for select projects.
Finally, all agreed that AI, if used thoughtfully and positively, could open up new markets for films. Director Balu Kiriyath concluded the session by thanking the audience for their enthusiastic participation.
