The Future of AI Text-to-Video for Content Creators

In this piece I will lay out a summary of AI video generation, what tools are available and where we might be heading. I have found very few LinkedIn posts around this, so decided to create our own and share what we think and what we have learned... so far!

(I have also created some very simple AI video using Runway ML to show what is possible using basic prompts.)

Very few people are experts in AI, let alone AI video generation. I do not claim to be an expert, but I'm very curious and intend to use this new technology to create both commercial video content and film narrative work. This tech will not go back into the box. It will only ever get better, faster and cheaper!

Video test 1. Prompt - "Oranges rolling down a street in the rain" :

AI video generation has just started and is already showing some amazing results. It will most definitely change the way that video content is created and shared.?

Ultimately we have two choices. 1. Hide 2. Understand and use.

2. is by far the better option because AI text-to-video is rapidly evolving. No one can predict what the next five years will look like. There are so many variables with the technology, how companies will use it and how professional video/ film creators will work with it. Let's try and outline where we are now and dare to peek twelve months into the future and guess how things might start to pan out.?

There are established creative software companies developing tools, like Adobe Firefly, Meta, Unreal Engine and Unity as well as new start-ups like Stable Diffusion, Runway ML, Midjourney to name few. They are already delivering fascinating products that you can play with now. One thing I can confidently surmise is that there will not be just one set of tools like the Adobe Suite, where you will get all the elements you need in one box (stills, motion, audio etc). We will be mixing and matching tools from various providers to get jobs done, until of course some serious consolidation occurs in a couple of years.? ? On top of this race, we have another interesting factor and that is to do with Open Source development. Where no one organisation owns the ‘tool’ (or does own, but allows third party development). This space is where individuals add to the tool set over time, creating incremental additions simply because they like it and want to make it better. You just have to look at Blender and how that has developed over the last five years into a real contender in the field of motion graphics and animation. More open source tools will come along and some of them will catch the imagination of developers and become market leaders.??

In the next 12 months, we can expect to see a number of new and exciting developments in this area, including:

• Improved accuracy and realism: As AI algorithms continue to improve, we can expect to see a significant increase in the accuracy and realism of AI-generated videos. This will make it possible to create videos that are indistinguishable from human-created videos, opening up a whole new range of possibilities for content creators. This has some profound implications for the industry and for the big players of content production and delivery. There are logical arguments - both good and bad regarding where we are heading. Will there be a drastic of the human workforce or will it enable people to have more time to be creative and less time needed to push buttons to get what they want? No one knows at this point, but we soon will.

Video test 2. Prompt - "Silver sphere hovering in the rural midwest of America at night" :

• New and innovative templates: AI text-to-video platforms are already starting to offer a variety of templates that can be used to create different types of videos. In the next 12 months, we can expect to see even more innovative templates being developed, making it easier for content creators to create high-quality videos without having to start from scratch. This means that we are starting to see workflow process's develop from script to distribution. (who ever gets this right will surely be in the money big time!)
• More affordable and accessible: AI text-to-video platforms are becoming more affordable and accessible, making them a viable option for a wider range of content creators. This will help to democratise the video creation process further, and make it possible for anyone to create high-quality videos, regardless of their budget or technical skills. This also means that the time to create and distribute will be a fraction of what it is now. The market will be flooded with quality of image, but necessarily quality of story.
• Fake video: This both terrifies and fascinates people in equal measure. We will truly start to understand what the implications are in a reactive sense (humans are mostly reactive creatures and governments are even slower), meaning until a deep fake video emerges and impacts us/ democracy/ truth negatively, the debate and what we can do about will kick-off in earnest.

These are just a few of the ways that AI text-to-video is set to revolutionise the video creation process.

What is possible now?

AI video generation is not quite there yet. The tools are disparate, the quality is not quite life-like. No one (as of 28th June 2023) has yet managed to create commercially useful solely AI generated video. People are using it to create examples, moving story boards, and test footage. We can see both the limitations and the promise!

Video test 3. Prompt - "Close up of a man's face looking directly at the camera with rain streaming down his face" :

What is just around the corner?

In the next 12 months, we can expect to see even more powerful and versatile AI text-to-video tools. These tools will be able to create videos that are more realistic, engaging, and informative. They will also be more affordable and accessible, making them a viable option for a wider range of content creators. Script to distribution services will pop up making it easier to deliver stunning AI content.

As AI text-to-video technology continues to develop, it will have a profound impact on the way we create and consume videos. Will high-end videos and films from huge studios be devalued? What does it mean for film stars, actors, crews and post production? What does it mean for the experience of consuming video and film? Will films and video be personalised and ordered/ created just for you, costing pennies and watched once by one person?

Conclusion

This technology is moving extremely fast. People around the World are grappling with the implications of this technology. Kids in their bedrooms are tinkering. Creativity and story telling is about to go through a fundamental shift. It is definitely moving faster then anyone (including the developers) predicted or thought possible, and these developments will compound exponentially. Bedroom creators will make the make the most compelling and amazing stories, while others will create dross and on industrial scale! Buckle up!