AI Assisted Productions

  This is the beginning of a long series of experiments. The study's focus is on the psychological phenomenon called pareidolia. According to Wiki: Pareidolia is the tendency for perception to impose a meaningful interpretation on a nebulous stimulus, usually visual, so that one detects an object, pattern, or meaning where there is none. Pareidolia is a specific but common type of apophenia (the tendency to perceive meaningful connections between unrelated things or ideas). Common examples include perceived images of animals, faces, or objects in cloud formations; seeing faces in inanimate objects. I have been fascinated with this phenomenon for most my life having incorporated it in my art since the early 1980's. Initially, I experimented with creating textures with various photographic processes and pigments on various materials to achieve interesting patterns that could be imagined into interesting works of art. Many of these textures I made on a frosted acetate film and sto...

  This film study is focused on the iterative process of Al generative video. It involved the following methodology. A key frame from each previous video batch was copied and refined to create the image for generating the next video in sequence. The figures were prompted to run, stop and look, while basic camera movements were also guided.  This film begins my shift into experimentation and away from narrative structures. With the last 13 works I've explored many different options for generative image and video creation. I found that among the AI generative models I used, they each have peculiar trainings and safeguards that prohibit violence, nudity and other sensibilities determined by a range of moral and ethical viewpoints. I was repeatedly stopped and given a warning for content violation. Amusing at first since I was only re-submitting images that the AI generative model generated. Later it became an annoyance and I jumped from many different AI models to achieve this f...

  This short film had similar challenges as my "Rice and Whiskey" short. There were very specific nuances of the setting that had to be correct or it was not authentic in my view. The major problem was with the Thai fishing boats. To quote Wiki:  Thai fishing boats, known as longtail boats (reua hang yao), utilize a distinctive long propeller shaft extending from the rear of the boat. This long shaft, typically several meters long, is connected directly to the engine, often a converted car or truck engine, and allows the propeller to be positioned at the surface of the water, higher than the surrounding water level. This design enables shallow water operation and provides thrust vectoring for steering.  The only text to image model that could get this correct was Google/Imagen 4 and sometimes close with Perchance/stable diffussion. The music generated was created with Aimusic. I developed lyrics with the AI lyrics generator and then created a song that I liked. What's int...

  This film was to experiment more with different methods of achieving lip sync. I've been using the lip sync service from Vozo and I also have been experimenting with Kling. Not entirely the best results achieved here. By focusing on a conversanionalist's face, the movement of lips is very noticable when not aligned with sound. There needs to be improvement in the technology. I'll be exploring other systems as I move forward.  Video can be viewed on YouTube:

  This film took a week to make. Not only did I have to grapple with very specific details of Thai culture, but I also made this film in the Thai language. To add to the workload, I also experimented with my first AI music generator. I subscribed to aimusic.so. The music is created with an Isan style music score and Thai lyrics, all created by AI. The major work for this film was in the opening scene. The Thai temple with rice paddies and sun shelter had to be Thai in look and feel. The rice farmer approaching on his motorbike had to be as accurate as possible. Later, the setup with a greeked out bottle of Hong Thong whiskey and Singha soda water and plastic cooler for ice- all had to feel authentic.  All of these elements are authenticated by the experiences gained with my rice farmer friends in Nakhon Sawan Province, Thailand. The film can be viewed here: