Paul Schrader gets honest about growing AI

Paul Schrader is a veteran filmmaker, and like other directors, he is, too, taking note of the growing AI in the filming industry.

Sharing his thoughts on Facebook, the American Gigolo director said he was stunned at the speed the technology has grown.

"I'M STUNNED," the Oh, Canada director began. "I just asked chatgpt for 'an idea for Paul Schrader film.' Then, Paul Thomas Anderson. Then Quentin Tarantino. Then Harmony Korine. Then Ingmar Bergman."

"Then Rossellini. Lang. Scorsese. Murnau. Capra. Ford. Speilberg. Lynch. Every idea ChatGPT came up with (in a few seconds) was good. And original. And fleshed out. Why should writers sit around for months searching for a good idea when AI can provide one in seconds?" he continued.

Paul previously shared similar ideas during the 2023 WGA strike—a guardrail against the AI was one of their demands—saying, "The Guild doesn't fear AI as much as it fears not getting paid. Burrow into that logic. It's apparent that AI will become a force in film entertainment."

"If a WGA member employs AI, he/she should be paid as a writer. If a producer uses AI to create a script, they must find a WGA member to pay," he wrote on Facebook at the time.