There is something about pioneers that makes them unique. Filmmakers who tackle AI are a rare breed and Hooroo Jackson continues to single himself out as a voice in this cinematic AI arena worth following. Strings is his latest foray into the much maligned anti-chamber of AI creative endeavour and marks another step on that evolutionary ladder. One that bounces between period drama and Greek tragedy.
Discussions of a dowry are drawn out while young women are wed to men of station. The illusion of open-air theatrics and Edith Wharton thematics come together in a tale that merges conflicting genres. Overly elaborate monologues are intercut with period drama preoccupations, making Strings feel disjointed as serious ideas clash with something the frivolous. Leaving audiences to connect the dots unaided as this feature length story unfolds.
From the outset, Strings is elevated by the photo real element of this story that turns a conventional period piece into one long technological flex. Those early issues with AI that took audiences out of the moment by highlighting the artifice have been dealt with to some degree. Occasionally, dialogue goes out of sync, facial expressions remain impassive when something more animated is required, but these flaws are minor in terms of the bigger picture.
Image Courtesy of Hooroo Jackson
Strings is proof that AI and the speed at which this method of filmmaking has evolved has infinite possibilities. In the limited amount of time Hooroo Jackson has been embracing this tech, his films have only become more sophisticated. Since my first encounter with him through Window Seat, AI as an alternate medium for film and cinema has come on leaps and bounds.
Storytelling within the confines of AI has taken baby steps along the road to becoming something close to cohesive. As that understanding has developed over the last three years, Hooroo Jackson has been there to implement and overcome any shortcomings as this entity has continued learning. That means Strings shows the first indications of a genuine performance from artificial intelligence which could be described as organic.
This might not be anywhere near Particle Six Productions ingenue Tilly Norwood levels of authenticity, but Strings is a recognisable advancement. Both in terms of realistic emotions depicted on screen, and narrative structure revealing story in an open and honest way. With AI films now being recognised through their own film festivals, it is only a matter of time before these endeavours become part of the mainstream.
What Strings does convincingly is take that ideal closer to fruition, by exploiting the advances of AI up to this point and creating something derivative in a completely original way. Showcasing the storytelling potential of AI for audiences prepared to invest, even if artificial intelligence in this current iteration is unable to fully realise that sense of cinema for the time being.
Strings is available now on YouTube.