🎬 AI isn’t your enemy [YET]—here’s why
- Enrico Tessarin
- Jan 21
- 2 min read
The Tunisian animator who proves indie filmmakers can win 💥
If you’re a Shorts 2 Features filmmaker—recent graduate, or a veteran struggling to make your first (or second) feature, or even just trying to get noticed—you’ve probably heard the fear: “AI is going to take jobs from animators and filmmakers.”
And yes, that fear is real. Traditional filmmakers are already feeling the pinch—especially in advertising. Think car commercials, brand campaigns, and product shoots that once relied on actors, crews, and full production teams… now increasingly produced with AI. Directors, DPs, and actors alike are seeing the industry shift under their feet - and, apparently, it's just the beginning.
But here’s another truth: those doors—Disney, Netflix, Amazon, the tOP advertising companies —were never open to most of us anyway. Millions of incredible storytellers never got a shot at entering through the main door. Even BAFTA winners get a sneak peak and then have to join at the back of the queue. That includes many of us in the Shorts 2 Features community.
So should we just change job? Not yet. SOme good news are coming.
💰 The Million-Dollar Wake-Up Call
A major animation competition in the Middle East recently offered a £1 million prize. Thousands applied.
The winner? A Tunisian animator who created a nine-minute animated film entirely by himself using AI. (link below)
No team. No studio. Just him. The link is here. Have a look
The result? He won the prize. Studios are interested in working with him—but he also has the choice to stay independent, become a one-man studio, sell his work directly, and even train others to do the same.
That’s not a shortcut. That’s visibility, power, and independence—amplified by AI.
🚀 Why This Matters
AI isn’t replacing creativity. It’s removing the friction that keeps indie filmmakers invisible. For us, it can:
Level the playing field and get your work noticed 🎯
Enable independent production find an audience without waiting for a studio ✅
Accelerate experimentation and lower costs ⚡
Turn creators into mini studios 🎬
For traditional filmmakers feeling the pressure in ads or high-end productions, that friction is real. But for indie filmmakers who’ve already been locked out, AI isn’t taking jobs—it’s opening doors we never had.
SO whats next for us?
🎥 Shorts 2 Features Ethos
This is exactly what Shorts 2 Features stands for:
Make work anyway, even when doors are closed 🚪
Reach audiences directly, without permission 👀
Turn indie filmmakers into sustainable, small studios 💪
AI can help us reach audiences, tell our stories, and train the next generation. That’s not a threat—it’s a tool.
✨ The Takeaway
The Tunisian animator didn’t win because AI did the work. He won because he had:
A voice
Vision
Courage
AI just amplified what was already there.
For all of us at Shorts 2 Features, that’s the reminder we need: the doors of Disney or Netflix may be closed (for now) —but we can all be mini studios, reach audiences, and tell the stories that matter.
AI isn’t the enemy. It’s an ally for anyone willing to create, experiment, and take control of their work. 💡
—The Shorts 2 Features Team (written with help from AI - of course)
