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During my discussions with writers and performers at the demonstrations of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes last year, there was a range of emotions surrounding AI, including anxiety, doubt, hesitation, and frustration, despite being largely negative.
The audience in Burbank displayed the strongest and most fervent opposition towards AI that I had witnessed. When asked about the impact of AI on the industry, an animator remarked, “AI can go away.” I queried storyboard artists Lindsey Castro and Brittany McCarthy on their views about AI, and both simply expressed their disapproval.
A year after the WGA strikes, according to the animation workers I conversed with, AI was not something to be explored or tested – it was something to be resisted. A worker walked past carrying a sign quoting the renowned animator Hayao Miyazaki’s statement that utilizing AI in the arts is “an affront to life itself.”
The weather was scorching, even at 5 pm, when Rianda took the stage to host. He presented a lineup of writers, directors, and animation icons such as Rebecca Sugar, Genndy Tartakovsky, and James Baxter, along with union representatives, politicians, and regular employees. “We’re not going to allow some heartless program or computer to snatch away your job,” stated California assembly member Laura Friedman. The mayor of Burbank, the president of IATSE, and the actor and podcaster Adam Conover also took their turns at the microphone.
Organizers and speakers marveled at the turnout – “I have never seen so many animation professionals gathered in one place before; we tend to remain in our dim caverns,” one person commented – and halfway through the event, Rianda declared it the largest rally in the animation industry’s history. Rianda maintained the high energy levels throughout the day, delivering jokes and rallying cries, his fair complexion reddening under the sun’s rays and strain.
Hundreds of animators cheered enthusiastically; it was evident that these “indoor kids,” as several animators called themselves, saw themselves as the endearing underdogs, battling against employers who sought to eliminate them using advanced technology. Indeed, in a comparison encouraged by Rianda at the rally, they were not dissimilar to his Mitchells, who were initially caught off guard by the whimsical robot uprising but managed to thwart it.
“I’m engaged in these efforts because I am deeply concerned that if people are uninformed about potential outcomes, the most dreadful scenario will materialize,” Rianda shared with me. “I see the beginning stages, and it will start off subtly, just like it did with self-service kiosks in supermarkets. Suddenly, the entire town is unemployed. They wonder, ‘What’s happening? Why can’t I find work?’ I truly believe thousands of jobs will be lost.”
Similar to many of his colleagues in the art and creative fields, Rianda now views artificial intelligence not as inherently worthless, but as a tool misused by the wrong individuals for the wrong reasons. This, he asserts, is the driving force behind his activism – striving to ensure that AI remains in responsible hands.
“The concept of AI is fantastic: Utilize it to combat climate change, eliminate cancer, and engage in other unconventional endeavors,” he explained. “However, in the possession of corporations, it functions like a destructive force that will obliterate us all.”
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