AI’s Looming Impact on Entertainment Industry Jobs

By Pickle August 14, 2024

The study finds that AI will likely displace 3-D modelers, sound editors, re-recording mixers, and broadcast technicians by 2026, while it is expected that sound designers, compositors, and graphic designers will also be affected to some degrees. However, storyboard artists, illustrators, and animators are not seen as being at risk

A new study has revealed that approximately 62,000 entertainment jobs in California, spanning film, TV, music, and gaming, will be disrupted by artificial intelligence (AI) within the next three years. The report, published by the Los Angeles Times recently, also estimates that 204,000 entertainment jobs across the United States will be affected during the same period. A job is considered disrupted when a significant amount of tasks within that role are consolidated, replaced, or eliminated due to AI, according to the study.

The report, commissioned by various industry organizations including the Animation Guild and the Concept Art Association, surveyed 300 entertainment-industry leaders, ranging from C-Suite executives to mid-level managers and producers. This comprehensive analysis sheds light on the potential impacts and implications of generative AI usage within the business.

Concerns about AI’s impact on jobs have been rising among Animation Guild members, prompting the union to use the study’s findings to inform its bargaining strategy. The data reveals the attitudes and intentions of the industry’s most influential figures regarding AI, which could be crucial for updating contract language around technological changes.

While AI is often viewed as a tool, the fear among industry professionals stems from the possibility of studios using AI to cut budgets and meet shareholder expectations. In an industry already strained by the COVID-19 pandemic, overspending during the streaming wars, labor disputes, and corporate mergers, AI adds another layer of concern for entertainment workers.

The growing presence of AI has been a point of contention in Hollywood, particularly during last year’s writers’ and actors’ strikes. The resulting contracts secured limitations and protections regarding the use of AI, providing some relief for writers and actors. However, the study indicates less concern for these roles compared to other crafts.

The study identifies the job tasks in film and TV most likely to be impacted by AI, including:

3-D modeling

Character and environment design

Voice generation and cloning

Compositing

Sound design

Tools programming

Scriptwriting

Animation

About a third of respondents believe that AI will displace 3-D modelers, sound editors, re-recording mixers, and broadcast technicians by 2026, while a quarter expect sound designers, compositors, and graphic designers to be affected. Fewer respondents see storyboard artists, illustrators, and animators as being at risk.

In the music and sound-recording industry, tasks like voice generation and cloning, music generation, and lyrics composition are most likely to be affected by AI. More than half of the survey participants anticipate that AI will displace sound designers in the next three years, with significant impacts also expected for music editors, audio technicians, and sound engineers. Songwriters, composers, and studio engineers are also seen as vulnerable to AI disruption.

The gaming industry faces similar challenges, with 3-D modeling and concept art/visual development identified as the most at-risk tasks, followed by character and environment design, sound design, and voice generation. About a third of industry leaders predict that AI will displace software developers, sound editors, special effects artists, and software analysts and testers, while 20% foresee impacts on 3-D artists, game designers, and video game testers.

Overall, the study concludes that entry-level positions in the entertainment industry will be disproportionately impacted by AI, raising concerns about the ecosystem’s future. While AI may create new job opportunities, it is unclear if displaced workers will have the skills needed for these new roles.

Some industry professionals, like a technical director at Disney Animation, see potential benefits in AI, such as improving working conditions by automating mundane tasks. The hope is to set industry standards for AI tools that help rather than harm artists and their livelihoods.