Feature filmmaking is not about to be replaced by short-form video, and AI-generated content is where Peter Chan Ho-sun draws the line.
AI as craft, not as creator
Speaking at the Singapore International Film Festival, the director of Comrades: Almost a Love Story and The Warlords said he expects to use AI in his own filmmaking but rules out AIGC, or AI-generated content. “Anything that helps me make movies, I welcome. But they won’t know art. Movies are still made by people,” Chan said.
Chan likened AI to CGI, which he argues has leaned on machine learning for years without being labelled as AI. The practical boundary for the screen business is clear: use generative tools for workflows and image assistance, but do not let them replace authorship or performance.
Feature films vs vertical dramas
Asked whether he had ever doubted entering the industry, Chan said this may be the toughest time for film, but he does not believe the medium will be “lost and gone” to short-form entertainment. He pointed to two ends of the audience spectrum behaving strongly at once: younger viewers turning to short and vertical dramas, while long-form storytelling thrives through hours-long podcasts and a global promotional push built around Christopher Nolan’s approach to Oppenheimer.
That simultaneity matters for platforms and media planners. A streaming service does not have to choose between snackable vertical drama and premium two-hour features; the two formats can feed different jobs in the same consumer day.
Constraint is a creative input
Chan described his DreamWorks film The Love Letter as difficult not because of culture, but because of a corporate system where it was unclear who made decisions, and a reliance on test screenings he compared to today’s algorithms. “Limitations of budget, stars, studios or censorship tend to push filmmakers to be more creative,” he added.
He also offered a career lens: his 1996 film Comrades: Almost a Love Story, now marking its 30th anniversary, “probably only barely recouped its investment” but bought him “a lease of movie life” for the next 30 years. Chan said 90% of people remember him for that single film—a blessing and a spell he wanted to break.
What to take back to your team
- AI is a tool, not the author. Use it for production efficiency; keep human craft as the premium layer.
- Plan for dual formats. Vertical dramas can coexist with feature-length content across the same service.
- Frame constraints as briefs. Budget, platform or censorship limits can sharpen creative output.
Chan’s latest feature, The Road Not Taken, premiered in Toronto and centres on a couple navigating early-onset Alzheimer’s. He summed up his career with a phrase he picked up while researching the film: “go with the flow, and know when to stop.” For the screen business, the message is similar—ride the short-form wave, but do not write off the feature.
Source: Variety
