Your Volvo spec ad is going viral on social media, and people are amazed that it was created within 24 hours. Can you tell us more about the process, and what those 24 hours looked like?
I had some basic ideas in mind for the ad even before Gen-3 was released. For this car ad, I initially jotted down 4-5 sentences describing the commercial—nothing too detailed. The advantage was being able to work in parallel; while generating the content, I could also edit simultaneously. It became a cycle of determining what shots I needed and figuring out where they could fit into the edit. This back-and-forth approach helped streamline the process.
You work as a professional colorist. How did your expertise influence the prompt for this project?
My background as a colorist only helped me to adjust some shots slightly to be more similar as there is a slight varience between each generation, even if the prompt is the same. However, my prior experimentation with image generation was incredibly beneficial.
The color consistency in your ad is remarkable. Was this achieved through prompting, post-production, or color correction?
About 90% of the color consistency was achieved through generating. By using the same prompts and scene types—like describing the weather and color tones—I got very similar results. I spent maybe 10 minutes on color grading, just adjusting the greens slightly. I didn’t invest much time in this aspect since it was initially just a test, and I didn’t expect it to gain this much attention.
Many people see image-to-video prompting as the holy grail of AI content creation. Currently, Gen-3, which you used for the Volvo spec ad, only works with text-to-video. What are your thoughts on this? Do you feel you would have more control with image-to-video?
I believe I would have more control with image-to-video because I have more experience with MidJourney. I didn’t have much experience with Runway’s text-to-video before this project.
However, Runway’s text-to-video has shown it can understand complex physics like fluids, wind, dust, and reflections, which might not be the same with image-to-video.
It’s difficult to say for sure until it becomes available.
Tools and updates are advancing rapidly. Many see your Volvo spec film as proof that professional-quality work can be produced with AI. Do you agree?
I’ve heard that compliment a few times, but I’m not sure if we’re fully there yet. If the question is whether AI can produce footage ready for a traditional commercial workflow without any other tools, I think the answer is still no. While I’m not a director, I see the numerous requests they have to accommodate during a commercial, and AI isn’t quite there yet. However, I believe it’s entirely possible to create a commercial primarily using AI and resort to traditional VFX methods when needed. For example, if the car were replaced, the ad would be suitable for online use.
You’ve been posting AI content on your Instagram account for some time. Can you tell us more about the project?
Sure! There has been some confusion about this, so let me clarify. I don’t use Instagram personally, but I started using it for side projects. These include an ultra-long exposure photography project, an analog glitch art project, and a projection mapping project.
When I began experimenting with image generators, the images weren’t very realistic. I created an automotive photographer’s account for the AI images to see if people could tell the difference. This quickly became irrelevant as the images became photorealistic within months.
The account name, Rick Deckard, is a nod to the protagonist from Blade Runner, hinting at the idea that one day, machines might not even know they are machines.
Creative tools like MidJourney have made huge leaps in the last two years. Do you think this pace will continue? How do you keep up with the new tools and updates?
I think the pace might even accelerate. For instance, Sora was announced by OpenAI unexpectedly, indicating that companies are developing specialized models behind the scenes. We already see image genAIs specialized for creating packshots. Since this is just a hobby for me, I don’t need to keep up with every tool. I prefer to stick with the ones I like and enjoy using and I can spend my time creating rather than learning a new tool.
You also work in the film industry. How much do you think AI will influence it?
I think it is already affecting it! Even though we haven’t yet seen any specialized AIs sold for professional usage, I think that will change the industry for sure.
The top 30% of the market will be untouched as clients who spend that much of money want maximum control, flexibility and quality. But I think the rest of the market will be affected as these tools will get cheaper, better and faster at a very fast pace.
So they will be better at understanding the requests of professionals and creating videos that can be used for jobs.
If AI can enable faster and cheaper advertising, it could be an opportunity for small businesses to advertise more. What do you think about this potential shift?
It’s hard to predict where this road will lead, much like the internet started as a network between universities and evolved into something far greater. Anything we can imagine now is likely very limited compared to what will actually happen. If we try to foresee the future of genAI based on current advertising methods, we’re on the wrong path. The possibilities are beyond our current imagination.
Given that GenAI is often seen as the point where AI demonstrates superior intelligence to humans in specific areas, what future scenarios do you foresee that might seem unimaginable today?
If I could foresee unimaginable things that would be great :)! But to answer a bit more serious way, things will change very rapidly and unexpectedly. Now genAI is everywhere, young kids are using it for their school work, people use it for images, videos. But how many people knew about genAI just a few years ago? So just like for most of the people – like me – it felt like this technology came from nothing, we will have some similar changes. This is why we can’t say now what will happen, which company will come out as a winner, etc.
What are your next AI projects? Another great commercial in a day?
I would love to continue pushing the boundaries of AI-generated videos and images. I enjoy experimenting with AI and working on unique projects that could be mistaken for traditionally shot content.
