In this deeply personal video essay, filmmaker Andreas Hem confronts the uncomfortable reality of AI's growing presence in the creative industry. Rather than dismissing AI or blindly embracing it, Hem shares his year-long journey from skepticism to nuanced understanding, ultimately arguing that real craftsmanship, risk, and human effort remain irreplaceable qualities that AI cannot replicate. He offers five practical steps for filmmakers (and creatives broadly) to prepare for what he sees as an inevitable transformation.
Hem opens with a striking observation: for the rest of his life, whenever he sees a photo or video, he will have to ask himself whether it is real or generated. He frames this as a fundamentally dystopian shift. The inability to trust what you see erodes the very foundation that makes visual media meaningful.
The emotional weight of footage comes from knowing it was captured in the real world, with real effort, risk, and sometimes luck. Carrying a camera to a mountaintop, waiting for clouds to break, being present at the right moment: these are things that cannot be replicated by a prompt. AI-generated imagery removes the sacrifice, the pressure, and the serendipity that give footage its power.
Hem identifies a core tension in the AI discourse: some creators are driven entirely by money, others entirely by passion, and most fall somewhere in between. The heated nature of the AI debate comes from these fundamentally different motivations colliding. Understanding where you fall on this spectrum is important for deciding how to respond.
Hem argues that 2026 marks the beginning of the end for narrow specializations in the film industry. Unless you are in the top 1% of your profession, being only an editor, only a sound designer, only a colorist, or only a VFX artist will not be sustainable long-term. This trend predates AI (budgets were already shrinking, crews getting smaller), but AI will accelerate it dramatically.
Broaden your capabilities beyond a single specialty. If you are an editor, learn sound design, color grading, and basic VFX. You do not need to master everything, but becoming a more complete filmmaker makes you harder to replace. If you already have broad skills, consider building a personal brand: start a YouTube channel, share your craft, and teach what you know.
Even if you prefer traditional methods, understanding what AI tools can and cannot do is essential. This knowledge is especially valuable when meeting clients and explaining why they should hire a human filmmaker. Key awareness areas include copyright uncertainty around AI-generated footage (no clear legal guarantees of ownership) and the fact that brands value authenticity and the collaborative process of working with real people.
Hem draws a clear distinction between AI doing your creative work and AI helping you work faster. He does not want AI to do his sound design, but he does want AI-powered search tools that help him find the right sound effects and music more efficiently. The principle: let AI handle the logistics and discovery while you retain full creative control.
Documentaries, weddings, festivals, concerts, and live events all require someone to physically be present with a camera. This area of filmmaking is far less vulnerable to AI disruption because the entire value proposition depends on capturing real moments as they happen.
As AI makes it trivially easy for anyone to generate high-end-looking content, that content will lose its value precisely because everyone can produce it. When that happens, brands will seek new ways to differentiate. Being able to pick up a camera, light a scene, and bring your own authentic touch will become a premium skill again.
Hem closes with his most passionate point. He believes that true greatness in filmmaking (or any creative field) requires stepping out of your comfort zone, taking real risks, and making real sacrifices. AI generative tools can produce impressive output, but they cannot produce greatness, because greatness demands that something be at stake. The filmmaker who challenges themselves to capture a shot without AI, who makes creative choices born from real constraints, is the one who builds a genuine audience and lasting body of work.