Camerimage puts AI on stage and under scrutiny

The 34th Toruń CAMERIMAGE International Film Festival opened on Nov. 7 with artificial intelligence made both a subject of debate and a conspicuous part of the ceremony. A humanoid robot, Edward Warchocki, delivered the opening address in place of founder and artistic director Marek Żydowicz, then held an extended exchange with him in Polish about AI’s role in cinema.

The three-hour ceremony also included video messages on AI from Francis Ford Coppola, Christopher Nolan, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Steven Spielberg, Gal Gadot and Ben Affleck. An actor in an “Inland Empire” rabbit costume introduced an AI-generated video in which the rabbit opened the festival gates to new technology.

The Hollywood Reporter reported that the robot’s appearance came as Żydowicz said the technology’s promises and threats would be discussed throughout the seven-day festival. The ceremony began with a minute’s silence for victims of a mass shooting in Kraków earlier that day.

The festival set its AI focus alongside its opening-night film. Luca Guadagnino’s “Artificial,” shot on 35 mm, opened the event, with Andrew Garfield playing Sam Altman and Yura Borisov playing Ilya Sutskever. Its cinematographer, Malik Hassan Sayeed, described AI as “just a tool, like any other.” Darren Aronofsky received the festival’s honorary Award for Director, while cinematographer Janusz Kamiński received The Hollywood Reporter’s Visionary Award.

The programming extends beyond ceremony symbolism to panels and workshops on generative AI’s effects on cinematography. One central subject is greybox filmmaking, in which actors are recorded against a neutral background and production design and lighting are added in post-production with AI.

IndieWire reported that cinematographer Bartosz Nalazek had used greybox techniques for 40% of scenes in a recently completed major television show. The approach can reduce complications involving locations and weather, but shifts creative choices from the shoot toward post-production, raising concerns that directors of photography could be excluded from key decisions.

At a “State of the Image” discussion, Arthur Reinhart asked Nalazek whether he enjoyed such work. “Totally not. It’s horrible, I’m brain-dead,” Nalazek replied, arguing that when artistry moves to post-production, “an elevated camera operator could do it.” Cinematographers working on hybrid AI productions also argued that such films can still employ hundreds of traditional workers, even with smaller crews. Doug Liman’s “Bitcoin” was cited as a prominent greybox project.

Camerimage has not adopted an unrestricted position on AI. Żydowicz said the festival welcomed a diversity of techniques and technologies, including hybrid films in which live performers determine how far AI may alter images, but would not accept productions generated entirely by AI. He said the discussion should help develop legal regulation, including possible European Union rules, while preserving the cinematographer’s creative contribution.

Founded in 1993 to champion cinematographers and other below-the-line artists, the annual festival draws about 70,000 attendees on average, including roughly 800 cinematographers. Its main competition is closely watched in the Best Cinematography Oscar race because many branch voters attend. This year’s festival runs through Nov. 14.