A group of international workers’ unions is planning a protest to raise the alarm over the dangers of AI in the field of animation at the Annecy Animation Festival this afternoon.
With a record 18,000 accredited guests scheduled to attend this year’s Annecy, the festival will feature numerous panels and roundtables discussing the role of AI in animation, one of the most talked about topics at every edition of the French event for the past several years. As has been the case in previous years, there are also several titles screening that made varying degrees of use of AI during their production.
Last week, labor groups from the U.S., France, Spain, Ireland, Belgium and elsewhere released a lengthy joint statement (available below) demanding action regarding the rise in use of AI in the field of animation. According to the coalition, artificial intelligence poses a threat to the craft and credibility of their industry.
The group of organizations has invited workers, students, and anyone who shares its concerns about the use of artificial intelligence in animation to meet for a public town hall this afternoon near the festival’s Bonlieu central hub.
Below, the group’s full statement, released before the festival:
ANIMATION INDUSTRY IN DANGER WORLD UNIONS DECLARE EMERGENCY IN THE FACE OF GENERATIVE Al USE
This statement was composed by a collective of international Animation Unions, federations, and organisations calling for action in regards to the usage of generative Artificial Intelligence and its destructive impact, not only on the global animation industry and the craft itself, but also on everyone who is employed by it, our culture and our planet.
The animation industry is suffering, after the explosion of the streaming bubble and the pandemic. The workers are feeling the repercussions : mass layoffs, increased use of outsourcing, closure of studios, decreasing budgets etc. Generative Al is seen by some as an answer to this crisis : a near magical tool that can produce words, images and sounds from a simple and vague description. But GenAl is neither a tool, nor effective, nor cheap. It is a copying machine that is flawed, destructive and expensive to run, threatening creative innovation and jobs in multiple industries.
GenAl do NOT support artists, it destroys them. The absence of humans is a feature, not a bug, of GenAl. It promises only the loss of employment and livelihood for millions of people worldwide.
This same technology is being used to foster dissent, confusion and distrust among the public. This unchecked growth and unjustified techno-optimism comes with incredible environmental consequences, including expanding demand for computing power, larger carbon footprints, shifts in patterns of electricity and water demands and an accelerated depletion of natural resources.
As such, there is a need for protection frameworks around GenAl, centered around transparency, compensation, control on the use of the work of the creator, and informed consent.
We call upon the regulators, lawmakers and governments to fight for culture and art and the value it provides, to draft and implement legislation that protects those workers and those rights.
We call upon producers, showrunners, studioheads, broadcasters and production staff to protect our creative culture and to prioritize both the workers and our work.
We call upon all creative workers worldwide to unite, speak up against the implementation of Al and unionise.
We invite all workers, students and allies to join us in Annecy festival, to discuss concerns and defense against GenAl, and to hear unions representatives read the statement on Thursday, June 12th, at 2 PM, on the Paquier.
Unions, Organisations and Federations behind this intiative: SNTPCT, SPIAC-CGT, CNT, Animation Workers of Ireland, l’ABRACA (Association Belge Regroupant les Auteur·ice·s Créateur·ice·s de l’Animation), Kunstenbond, Unie Van Regisseurs, Les Intervalles, Guilde Française des Scénaristes,Syndicat des Scénaristes, SFA, SNAM, STJV, GWU Ireland, CSVI-CGT, UNI, FIA, FIM
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