AI (Artificial Intelligence) based ChatGPT got introduced in November 2022 and since then it affected a major number of industries. Like snap of Thanos, it disrupted on a gigantic scale. Since then, there is a constant debate regarding is AI a friend or a foe. In this article, we will discuss regarding the integration of AI in Animation field (AVGC at a large) and possible outcomes of it.
We will talk both the sides – potential benefits and negative concerns.
Rise of AI in Animation
This is the perfect example of ‘Technology meeting creativity’.
As per the market research, the market size of global Generative AI in Animation market is USD 1.2 Billion in 2023. It is expected to be around USD 17.7 Billion by 2033, growing at a CAGR of 35.7%. This numbers are spectacular and going to be true, as per the current pace of technology advancements.
Some of the major AI based Animation tools / apps for digital content creation are:
- Sora
- Runway
- Stable Diffusion
- Decoherence
- Midjourney
- Wonder Studio
- Kaiber
- Pika Labs
Pros of AI in Animation, VFX & Games
The transformative power of AI era comes as a boon. Some of the major benefits are as follows.
- Enhances productivity as it can take care of mundane works.
- It can push creative boundaries when an artist gets creative blockage. It helps to spark creativity.
- It helps to automate repetitious tasks like batch rendering, change of naming conventions of files and folders etc.
- It can gives tons of iterations in no time. So, it saves your lots of production time.
- It streamlines the production workflow, so the artists focuses more on creativity rather than struggling with technical challenges.
- It can tackle complex tasks like crowd simulation, large scale texturing with ease.
- The procedural generation algorithms can easily create environments like gigantic open worlds, sceneries and mountaineer.
- AI can analyze animation principles and suggest the required adjustments. It can help animators to achieve more natural movement which includes weight distribution, muscle simulation, secondary animation etc.
So, on an overall, AI in animation pipeline reduces production time without compromising the quality. You can get tons of visual ideas and unique concepts in a second. Then, it is up to you how to take it forward as per the project.
The power of AI tools can redefine the animation ecosystem and improve the responsibilities of the existing job roles. It can open new many new avenues and logical possibilities, where human mind gets creative blockage.
Cons of AI in Animation, VFX & Games
There is a negative side also of this silver linings which gives a great amount of efficiency and productivity. Some of possible negative concerns are as follows.
- It leads to job loss of artists. Replacement of human artists is the biggest issue.
- All the AI models are trained on the existing contents. But, the artists who has created such artworks are never given any credits and moreover there are not asked their consent for the same. It is completely unethical practice.
- It they are trained on the datasets which are biased, they will produce the same result. They can’t be proactive to make unbiased changes.
- Algorithm transparency will always be a huge concern.
- With the storm of such new age tools, the old school artists will become obsolete, if they don’t do upskilling and adaption of new technologies.
- You can easily identify the AI generated artworks. Majority of them look same. So, overuse of such tools will lead to losing the uniqueness.
The future of Animation with AI
With all these benefits and negative points, we should see AI as a collaborator, not as a competition. We should use as an empowering toolset. All the traditional 3D Animation and VFX softwares have already started integrating AI tools in their native workflow. And this synergy will increase with each software update.
Many major CGI and VFX studios have their own proprietary software suits in their own production and post production pipeline. Like, MARZ (Monsters Aliens Robots Zombies) have Native AI tool to automate the 2D pipeline of de-aging, cosmetic and prosthetic fixes. It saves a huge man hours and makes production output very fast. Nuke’s CopyCat tool, baked by machine learning helps to give more productive VFX pipeline.
Apart from the studio life cycle, AI is also helping for recommendation in content personalization. Netflix, Amazon Prime, SonyLIV and all other major OTT player’s algorithms suggests the users as per their earlier preferences.
Advancements in machine learning, neural networks, and generative adversarial networks (GANs) will create more sophisticated AI tools in the upcoming future. There will be a constant push of innovations in our creative industry. AI in Animation is an ever evolving thing and will not stop. As a conclusion, we all artists have to balance the AI automation and human intelligence / creativity.
No matter how big AI becomes, but you always need a human touch who can take right decision. The finesse, which comes after years practical experience and exposure, can’t be compromised by any artificial tools. AI tools cant replicate the nuances of human expression and the ability to make a character relatable with actual emotions. So, an artist is irreplaceable. But, on the contrary, he/she need to adapt new technologies and working styles.