France’s Macron, S. Korea leader warn at film summit of AI risks to creativity

SAINT-PAUL-DE-VENCE, France — French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday called for cinema to be protected in the age of artificial intelligence and streaming platforms, as he hosted a summit with global entertainment chiefs including major US studio bosses.

Hollywood favorite George Clooney brought some of his star power to the event, which brought together more than 200 guests from dozens of countries, including top executives from US studios such as Sony Pictures and Disney.

Called the Lumiere summit, in a nod to Auguste and Louis Lumiere, the French brothers considered the inventors of the motion picture, the event took place in the medieval village of Saint-Paul-de-Vence near Nice and was co-chaired by South Korean President Lee Jae Myung.

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South Korea is home to some of the world’s most celebrated filmmakers, including Park Chan-wook, who chaired the Cannes film festival jury this year, and Bong Joon-ho, the Oscar-winning director of “Parasite.”

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The organizers hope the event at the Maeght Foundation for contemporary art will help spur action to support the film industry, which has been weakened by falling cinema attendance and competition from streaming platforms.

Both Macron and Lee warned about the advance of AI.

“We would be making a tremendous mistake if this technology became a tool that replaces, or claims to replace, creators,” Macron said.

Lee said that artificial intelligence should develop in “a more responsible and human-centred way”.

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“The film and audiovisual industry must be rooted in human creativity and must resonate with human emotions,” he said.

‘Elephant in the room’

The leaders of France and South Korea also said their countries would invest one billion euros ($1.15 billion) to support independent filmmaking.

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“May this partnership transcend our bilateral relationship and reach across the globe,” Lee said.

An informed source said half the money would come from France’s state investment bank Bpifrance, and the rest from South Korea.

Macron also announced the creation of an organisation, with a budget of 30 million euros, aimed at supporting independent cinema.

Film stars including Pedro Almodovar and Juliette Binoche joined remotely for the launch.

Executives from streaming giant Netflix and social media platform TikTok attended the event.

But key players such as YouTube and Meta, the parent company of Instagram, declined invitations.

“The elephant in the room is really YouTube,” TF1 chief executive Rodolphe Belmer said.

Leading generative AI companies were also absent.

They have been accused by rights holders of using film and audiovisual works to train their models without permission.

Gaetan Bruel, head of France’s National Cinema Centre (CNC), which helped organize the gathering, said it was time for “concrete measures,” even if it was impossible “to solve every problem in a single day.”

He called for “a new multilateralism” in the industry, saying “that means tackling these issues using the same approach that was applied to climate change.”

The director of the Cannes Film Festival, Thierry Fremaux, praised the event.

“The value of this summit lies in creating that meeting place, where the format itself helps drive the discussion,” he said.

Fremaux sounded upbeat, saying cinema has been experiencing one of the strongest years since Covid.

READ: ‘Avatar 2’ success proves cinema in post-pandemic ‘resurgence’: Cameron

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“During the pandemic, people got used to watching films at home and wondered whether cinemas were still necessary,” he said. “But audiences have come back, and younger viewers are returning to the cinema.” /ra