Nigel Camp

There's a lot of great work coming out right now, and it's brilliant seeing so many people come through the door. If you're making stuff with AI, I'd learn the filmmaking fundamentals if you haven't. The deeper you go, the more you get how editing actually works on people. How long a scene should breathe. When to go wide and when to go close. When to bring in sound effects and music, and when to leave a moment in total silence. And know who you're making it for. It's those small decisions that'll set you apart from the crowd

Getting someone to click and stick for five seconds is the easy part. The harder job is making them want the whole thing, start to finish. Doesn’t matter if you’re building it in AI or on a set. Same question every time. Why should anyone care about these people? There’s gonna be a flood of content with all these tools. Standing at the top still comes down to that.

We’re at a bit of a crossroads with AI right now. As a filmmaker I still see it as a tool only, not the director. So I put together a small resource that pulls the best craft tips from filmmaking into this new AI stretch, and points straight back to the people who made them. Not my work. Other people’s. Credited. ai-fieldnotes.com

Pretty frames get most of the love. Sound’s still where the human decisions matter most for me. When it comes in, when an effect hits. That timing’s the craft. Auto audio can fill a track. It doesn’t choose with you.

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Here’s how I usually build an AI film, for what it’s worth. Not saying it’s the only way. Human always in the room. Once the idea’s locked I think hard about the characters. What they look like. Wardrobe, haircut, the lot. I’ll do a load of research on the side so they feel specific, not default AI face. Then I’ll mock a storyboard with Grok Bot or whatever’s handy. Just a guide. It usually changes as the cut matures. I frame the shots the same way I would if I had a crew in the room. Wides, overs, close-ups, that language is in my head while I’m building it. I also pay real attention to shot duration, how it sits with the music and the motion I want to convey. That early map’s what lets me see if the ending actually means something. Then it’s trial and error hunting shots, sound and music from Epidemic Music, and cutting in Premiere. For me sound and music are what really pull a project together. Should never be underestimated. Same method as any other film. The tools changed. The edit didn’t.

The generate button isn't the edit. I can get a decent take now without a crew, and I still end up staring at the timeline wondering why it doesn't land. Same old problem. Pace, what you cut, whether the next shot earns it.

Been thinking about how people decide what’s “good” in AI film. A lot of it’s tribal. Tool camps. Who’s loudest that week. I’m a storyteller. Strip the bias and it’s simpler. How does it make you feel? Do you actually want to keep watching?

Was at a small AI filmmakers meetup in London. Proper chat. People actually sharing. Most of the room was on Kling and Seedance. I showed a bit of underwater work from Grok Imagine and it felt like a quiet underdog moment. No shade. Different lanes. For me it’s still the cut that decides it. Let's always keep that human in the room driving any project.

I went to a storytelling event yesterday. Had a really good chat with someone there, and we landed on the same thing. Whatever tools you’re using, you’ve still got to keep a human in the driver’s seat. If you don’t, everyone’s just gonna end up making the same content. AI’s getting a lot of fanfare right now, for good and bad reasons. That’s fine. I still see it as a tool. Not the director.

Most AI clips are trying to win the first second. A short has to win the next ninety. That’s the whole game as I see it. Human in the room. Always.

Anyone else exhausted by fake AI clips and deepfakes everywhere? Tech’s incredible… until context gets stripped away and even honest work looks suspicious. Your face in an ad you never signed off on? That’s the real blackout in AI video ... confidence, not power. bit.ly/4rUUdwA

Everyone's saying Hollywood is done because of AI. I say the next golden era is coming and will be won pixel by pixel. bit.ly/3Mkejko

Something is happening in Hollywood. The end of traditional stardom? Actors are turning into royalty-earning IP, just like top musicians with their catalogues. This could change everything for actor royalties. bit.ly/4aZ6JF0

"Who owns your AI video? You? The tool? Or nobody—until you prove it. 'I prompted it' many not hold up when someone re-cuts it with new voices or claims likeness. Proof > prompts. Post here - bit.ly/4rSh2jU

Seedance 2.0 blows up with hyper-real AI video. Hollywood calls foul on infringement. Meanwhile, a lot of training data comes from material that’s already online, and the rules around permission, opt-outs, and licensing are still being fought over. The uncomfortable question is whether your work could be used without you ever knowing. Think a YouTuber’s back catalogue, a campaign shoot made for a brand, or something personal you shared online that later gets pulled into a dataset. Consent? Disclosure? Read more here: bit.ly/4rquYlA

Could AI quietly reshape the films we love without most of us even noticing? Picture subtle changes creeping in over time. Dialogue softened just a bit. Scenes tweaked here and there. Faces or lines swapped. Soon the altered version becomes the default one everyone streams. That's "default drift", a subtle form of AI film censorship that's already technically possible. In my latest post I explore the idea and share two simple safeguards to protect original versions. Post here - bit.ly/4ca3n33