Believe me when I tell you, I didn't plan on writing yet another Hollywood article. It seems that I do so many of them that you would think this is allI focus upon. Seriously, the hits just keep on coming as they say.
The latest was an article I came across that covers an interview Justine Bateman gave. For those old enough, you will remember her from Family Ties. In addition to her acting career, she also found success as a director.
For this reason, the article captured my attention. Her views are varied in perspective, since she wore a few different hats in the industry.
Sadly, she has views that are nonsensical with regards to the conversation.
So let's dive into it and tear this apart.
Source: YouTube
AI Will Burn Down The business
To start, Bateman's assertion that AI will burn down the business is wrong. It is already cooked as I wrote on a number of occasions.
Anyone who reads my articles will notice, when it comes to Hollywood, I haven't discussed AI a great deal. This is not the case with Web 3.0 where I will dive into it. This is an after thought for Hollywood.
As stated, the destruction of Hollywood was 30 years in the making. The disruptor is the Internet. This is no different than the newspaper industry. We simply are dealing with a media type, video, that was more difficult to deal with. As time passed, this was not the case.
Bateman is right in her assessment of the technology. Generative AI would crush the entire structure of the film and television business, if it wasn't being crushed already. Fragmentation is the true disruptor as eyeballs are now on many different platforms.
AI is simply the fall back.
Also, the fact that Bateman is debate the CTO of Gladstone shows how off base this is. Centralized entities are going away. The movie studios are dying. As stated on a number of occasions, this has nothing to do with the quality of the films, going woke, COVID lockdowns, or ticket pricing.
If this were the case, the situation might be reversible.
What we basically have is the independent film movement on steroids. You would think that something like that would excite someone like her, but it doesn't. Of course, if her focus is jobs, that makes sense. The new movement towards independent films will be technology driven.
That is why focusing upon the major studios is a waste of time. It is likely they will not survive, at least in their present form.
It Is Done
Of course, there is something much bigger.
While it is admirable for Bateman to stand up for the jobs, it is done That sounds cold but it is the reality of what we are dealing with. It was the case in the past and certainly will be going forward.
For example, did Bateman subscribe to Netflix even though they were putting all those people at Blockbuster and Movie Gallery out of business? Was she concerned about the humans who lost their jobs as traders or brokers as computers took over the trading of financial assets? Who stood up for the typewriter or postage machine sales people?
Generative AI is not going to crush just Hollywood jobs. It will likely be taking out accountants by the end of the decade. We are going to see paralegals finding their work load reduced to the point they are no longer needed. Call center personnel are already seeing their ranks thinned. Eventually, those who drive for a living will be obsolete.
This is a small list of the eventual fallout. Bateman mentioned marketing departments. She is correct on that. Does she realize that companies all over the world will start to eliminate them?
I wonder if she feels bad about all those elevator or switch board operators who lost their jobs due to technology.
What we are witnessing is another Luddite situation. We are going to see a lot of them. To her credit, Bateman is not falling into this for herself. Her plight in life is secure. She will still be able to operate, regardless of how technology changes things. In fact, her skills might be enhanced where she can take her creative output to another level.
Instead, she is shining light on those who have no voice. For this, I applaud her. However, it is fruitless proposition.
We no longer have typing pools, those were erased by the copy machine. Sellers of long distance phone service has to move on. Actually, as a side note salespeople are going to find themselves replaced as AI agents become popular.
The morale of the story is accepting where things are going. Wishing it would be different is not the solution. Technology is not stopping, especially in a global situation. Even if the movie studios did agree to what she is stating, that means nothing to the start up in Arizona, Georgia, or Bangladesh.
Does she think the Chinese care about burning down Hollywood? Not in the least.
Either people prepare for what is coming or they get run over by it. That simply is how it goes. Those who figure out where things are heading can at least prepare.
Technology is deflationary in nature. That means jobs are lost. It is time for people to start providing some solutions.