In a recent conversation at the AVP Summit, producer Lori McCreary offered a sharp reminder of the evolving responsibilities producers face in a rapidly changing industry:
“Producers today are constantly walking the tightrope between legal protection and creative ownership… For producers, documentation is going to be key. We need to log our prompts… We need to show human oversight, annotate all of our choices because one day we might have to prove that our project was crafted by humans.”
That quote hit me because it’s no longer just about budgeting, scheduling, and packaging. As AI tools become more accessible and legally ambiguous, we may be called to protect the creative integrity of our work in new ways.
McCreary’s full remarks in this Deadline piece are worth a read:
https://deadline.com/2025/07/lori-mccreary-producers-ai-age-avp-summit-1...
Producers:
- Are you already documenting your development process?
- How are you navigating the use of AI while protecting IP and credit?
- What tools or strategies are you using to demonstrate human authorship?
1 person likes this
I am documenting my development process, but only the part that is doable. I am not documenting my prompts, I document contracts, e-mails and deal memo's for legal. AI is just programming you pay (indirectly) for, it's not like if you use Word on an Apple PC to write a screenplay Microsoft and Apple can claim copyright. For court you just have to be original (*) and not a cheater to begin with.
AI is the new thing, its where investments go, employment rises and business' finding their new opportunity - so better use it if you want to stay in business as a producer in also the shalala of the filmworld.
When a new screenplay rolls out of ChatGTP its yours. Legally ChatGTP is just like any other software programme you use for realising a motion picture. And if you think of it, doesn't differ as much from the first Google websites that were used to research and write screenplays. Google and others can't claim anything unless your work isn't just original enough for a judge in court. So the best strategy is to have some legal knowledge as a producer and have a good lawyer or lawyer team available when shit hits the van. Which you can budget.
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Thank you, Ashley, for starting a very important topic. It was only yesterday my son, and I were talking about the influence of AI and how does it affect the creative artist. For me I still believe in the good old writing your own script, letting your thoughts and dialogues flow through. It looks like, Chat GBT is like my big competitor. We were saying that in a few years' time even music will be done by AI / Chat GBT. For me it is like cheating at the exams. What will happen to the writers and musicians.
I think that when the AI way of doing things increase, they will be a loud shout for more legal intervention or Chat GBT might build in an app where you can copyright what you have designed together.
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you have to turn off the setting in your AI app that allows them use your data. I mean if the company respect it. if you have an idea for a movie and share it with AI then it might bundle it up other ideas it got my various artist and offer it to some one asking for ideas.
I have used AI to generate some images in past but I stopped doing it few years ago as we artist at that time didn't know how Ai worked.
stay safe. protect your ideas.
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It's a subject of serious importance Ashley Renee Smith ! Thanks for the posting!