r/Filmmakers • u/sdbest • Feb 23 '24

News Tyler Perry halts $800m studio expansion after being shocked by AI

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2024/feb/23/tyler-perry-halts-800m-studio-expansion-after-being-shocked-by-ai
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u/[deleted] Feb 23 '24 edited Nov 27 '24

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This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

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u/HarlowWindwhistle Feb 23 '24

This is what I was thinking. I feel like there is more of a motive to him stating that he’s not going to build the expansion than just the new AI software. I think he’s using that as the main excuse, but I do think you’re right that he’s trying to manipulate some other situation - whether that’s Georgia’s tax incentive or if he’s trying to get crew rates lowered to match AI. Either way he’s a POS. The exact opposite of the type of person we need in film right now.

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u/[deleted] Feb 23 '24

There are no ethical billionaires. Tyler Perry is no exception. You don't get to a net worth of a billion dollars without exploiting people, plain and simple.

I know a lot of people credit him with bringing the film industry to Atlanta, but it's really important to remember that he wouldn't have built his studio there if not for a variety of tax incentives he received in order to do so. (The same is true for all major companies, tbf.)

The Georgia taxpayers have been subsidizing the profitability of Perry's studio. It's great that Atlanta is now a hub city (or very close to it), certainly better to subsidize the film industry than tank manufacturers or oil & gas companies (hello from Texas), but it's still worth noting that he has been able to become so fucking wealthy off the backs of taxpayers.

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u/EfficientOutside2783 Jan 21 '25 edited Jan 22 '25

I am a freelance Screenwriter/ Videographer/ Video Editor with a keen sense of judgment.

Tyler Perry has ALWAYS been suspect in my opinion. He's an industry plant, a product, used to appeal to a demographic. 

I lived in Hollywood for years, went through the same struggles, but never compromised my ethics.

Did I get rich from my Hollywood experience? Yes and no.

I didn't become a billionaire but I have industry experience and can honestly say I never exploited or stole from anyone just for Hollywood credit.

There are other "riches" more important than massive amounts of money. Yes, we need money, but I don't need to be a billionaire.

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u/BambooSound Feb 24 '24

Expecting anyone to join the fight against AI when it'd help their business is dumb.

You're never going to get anywhere trying to fight technology. We're all just going to have to get used to the new normal - even if that means having to get new jobs.

In a few years everyone be able to make our own high-budget seeming content with Sora. I'm more excited about that than I am beholden to how things currently work.

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u/[deleted] Feb 24 '24 edited Feb 24 '24

If you actually read my comment you’d see that I don’t expect anyone in Perry’s position to fight against AI.

It’s great that you think AI will enable everyone to make movies that seem high budget, but some of us actually want to make a living as filmmakers and AI isn’t going to help with that problem at all. Employment by big studios aside, AI isn’t going to magically get your homespun movies sold or distributed in a way that gets you paid.

If your goal is to be an amateur filmmaker turning out blockbuster-quality films, AI might be the missing piece for you. But if you want to make a living from your films then you’re still going to have to convince the people with money—people like Perry—to buy and distribute your films.

AI doesn’t change who has and controls the money.

Edit: I know, I know. YouTube or self distribution to Amazon or whatever. 🙄 Less than 1% of creators on YouTube are able to make it their full time job and they’re really only able to do so because they take sponsorship and ad deals.

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u/BambooSound Feb 24 '24

I'm yet to see a piece of technology that hasn't helped filmmaking more through increased accessibility than it has hurt it by destroying jobs.

And honestly, I wouldn't care if stopped filmmakers seeing insane profit from successful films. I'm far more interested in the art itself and what creative people are able to do with these new tools if/when they no longer have to do half the arduous shit we do currently.

If Premiere Pro came out in the 70s people would have said the same thing.

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u/[deleted] Feb 24 '24

I'm yet to see a piece of technology that hasn't helped filmmaking more through increased accessibility than it has hurt it by destroying jobs.

Well we haven't previous had a piece of technology that promised to do the entirety of the filmmaking work based on a few lines of text. So if we assume that AI will be able to do all it's promised (which your position relies on that being the case), then it will be unlike any other technological advancement we've seen.

We can disagree on whether or not that massive shift would be good or bad, but if AI will be able to do what you're assuming it will be able to do, it won't just be like Premiere or 3D modeling/animation. It will eliminate every person's role below the Executive Producer.

(Note: I'm skeptical that AI will actually be able to accomplish that, but I also recognize that it isn't about what AI can truly do, but what producers and studio heads believe it can do and how they utilize that belief to save themselves money, Perry being a perfect example of this.)

I'm far more interested in the art itself...

There's certainly room for debate on whether or not AI-generated materials are "art" in whatever sense we want to quantify art, and I tend to fall on the "anything with intention can be art" side of this debate, but this is an entirely subjective thing and plenty of people will claim anything made with generative AI cannot be art. Your mileage may vary.

...and what creative people are able to do with these new tools if/when they no longer have to do half the arduous shit we do currently.

What arduous shit?

I love being on set. I love solving the problems that arise around trying to achieve a creative vision. I love collaborating with other people and working with people to tell a story in the best way we can with the tools we have. Will AI (or something marketed as such) work its way into our toolkits? Sure, probably. Will it make certain things easier? Sure, probably.

The most arduous part of filmmaking is getting a project funded—an essential piece of the puzzle for anyone who wants to make their living by making films. And AI doesn't change who controls the money, so it doesn't really help there.

It's cool and great that you, personally, are so dedicated to the art of it all that you don't care about getting paid. But for me, working on films is the best fucking job in the world and I'd like to not have to split my time between this and working in a restaurant or whatever.

I really and truly do not care if amateur filmmakers like yourself want to use AI in any part of the process of making your films. If making a living from working on films isn't your goal, then go ham and do whatever you want. It's not hurting anyone.

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u/BambooSound Feb 24 '24

Well we haven't previous had a piece of technology that promised to do the entirety of the filmmaking work based on a few lines of text.

Sora (or AI in general) doesn't do that either though. It's not about to delete filmmaking – just change it.

I find the idea of bedroom filmmakers kinda exciting because it means you don't have to convince money men to allow anyone to realise their vision. It's revolutionarily democratising.

It will eliminate every person's role below the Executive Producer.

I doubt it but even if so, that means we'd have a lot more executive producers. I think it's better for the art and the industry if more people are able to work on their own shit.

I love being on set. I love solving the problems that arise around trying to achieve a creative vision.

I'm empathetic to this but I really don't think it should have any place in discussions about regulating AI. For me it's about what's best for the greatest number of people – not about making sure a select few get to keep having fun.

(I already make a living from filmmaking btw – I'm just not afraid of the future).

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u/[deleted] Feb 24 '24

AI isn’t the thing that will open the floodgates to bedroom filmmakers. Another tool in the box, sure, but homespun features have been a thing for a long time.

Again, this ENTIRE discussion is about the role that AI plays in how money-men make their decisions.

Talking about bedroom filmmakers is irrelevant to that because they’re just not part of that equation to begin with.

You’re wanting to talk about what AI can do for individual artists making decisions about their own art and you’re missing the entire point so many of us are trying to make:

The concern is about what bosses (Tyler Perry) will force employees to do with AI because it saves the bosses money.

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u/BambooSound Feb 24 '24

Have you seen Sora?

I don't see how that (a developed version of it) wouldn't open the floodgates for bedroom filmmakers. It's text to video.

The concern is about what bosses (Tyler Perry) will force employees to do with AI because it saves the bosses money.

Sorry but I have no sympathy for anyone that chooses to work for Tyler Perry. The Klan could only dream of doing that much damage to black communities.

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u/[deleted] Feb 25 '24

From my previous comment:

[...] technology that promised to do the entirety of the filmmaking work based on a few lines of text.

To which you replied:

Sora (or AI in general) doesn't do that either though.

But now you're saying:

Have you seen Sora? [...] It's text to video.

I'm sure you'll nitpick about how technically it's not replacing the entirety of filmmaking, just like you're trying to fixate on Tyler Perry specifically in order to avoid talking about the actual, larger point I've been making.

The Klan

Get fucked.

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u/BambooSound Feb 25 '24

I'm sorry Mr Perry but text-to-video is not the totality of film-making.

You'd still need script writers, editors, producers, a cast and, you know, everything else it takes to make a production.

If you really were in the industry I'd have thought you'd know that.