Baek Byung-yeul is a journalist at The Korea Times focused on cultural content, including films and cultural events in South Korea. You can contact him at baekby@koreatimes.co.kr to share your insights.
Bong Joon-ho expresses AI concerns, championing human creativity
Director Bong Joon-ho attends the opening ceremony of the 22nd Marrakech Film Festival in Marrakech, Morocco, Friday. AP-Yonhap
By Baek Byung-yeul
Director Bong Joon-ho shared strong views on artificial intelligence (AI) at the Marrakech International Film Festival in Morocco, joking that he would form an army to destroy AI, while also crediting the technology for making people seriously think about what only humans can do.
Serving as the jury president for the 22nd edition of the film festival, the Korean director responded to a question about the rise of AI during a press conference on Saturday (local time). He expressed mixed feelings about the technology as the film production community has increasingly felt the impact of AI.
“My official answer is, AI is good because it’s the very beginning of the human race finally seriously thinking about what only humans can do. But my personal answer is, I’m going to organize a military squad, and their mission is to destroy AI,” he said.
Aside from this humorous answer, Bong has often spoken about how much AI has affected filmmakers and his own creative process.
At a global conference in Seoul last September, Bong said that the technology has been a great shock to the film industry.
“Filmmakers constantly talk about AI when they eat, drink coffee and even when they go home,” he said. “Because AI has shaken everything we believe in and are fascinated by regarding video, we feel both fear and excitement.”
Director Bong Joon-ho, center, jury president of the 22nd Marrakech International Film Festival, speaks during a press conference in Marrakech, Morocco, Saturday (local time), while jury members Celine Song, left, and Jenna Ortega also attend. EPA-Yonhap
The director then pointed out his own use of the technology in the recent release, “Mickey 17.”
“There is a scene in the film 'Mickey 17' where two Mickeys, meaning two Robert Pattinsons, appear on a single screen. Ironically, we received the help of AI for the visual effects of that scene. It’s a case where AI was used for visuals,” Bong said.
“The reality is that we use AI technology as a tool, even in a movie that deals with how humanity is threatened by technological advancement, while the unique warmth and imperfection of humans remain.”
Bong is leading an eight-member jury of the festival, which runs through Dec. 6. Among the jury members, “Past Lives” director Celine Song and “Wednesday” actor Jenna Ortega also expressed concerns about what AI technology would ultimately do to art.
They shared Bong’s concerns and emphasized that creative work is a human process that cannot be reduced to algorithms. They added AI may take over the human experience, but people will eventually get tired of AI content, leading audiences to value human-made content.