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Film schools are starting to generate a pipeline of AI filmmakers skilled in using the newest tools to make movies — talent that is easier to hire than to train internal teams on, say film executives.
“How do we find people who already know how to use this?” is a common question studios are asking now, said Cristóbal Valenzuela, the CEO of AI-powered software firm Runway. Runway launched its inaugural AI filmmaking course in 2024 at NYU’s Martin Scorsese Virtual Production Center.
Courses to train on its tools are now offered at USC, Rhode Island School of Design, MIT, and Harvard, as well as universities across Europe and Latin America.
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Other AI research labs building AI-enabled creative tools, such as Google and OpenAI, are also teaching filmmakers and other creatives how to incorporate AI into the process.
Google offers a residency for creatives experimenting with their AI studio, Flow, to bridge the gap between filmmakers and Google engineers. While AI fluency isn’t yet a prerequisite for movie making, some of the residency’s creatives are betting it soon will be.
“You’re going to have to learn how to use [these tools] if you do want to be in the industry,” said Brad Tangonan, a longtime filmmaker and an alumnus of Google’s Flow sessions residency.