As artificial intelligence rapidly reshapes the global film industry, emerging South African filmmaker Oratile Prudence Sesinyi is encouraging creatives to embrace the technology without losing sight of the people and experiences that give stories their meaning.
From script generation and storyboarding to editing, sound design and visual effects, AI is transforming how films are made. For independent filmmakers working with limited budgets, these innovations present exciting opportunities to improve efficiency, reduce production costs and bring ambitious creative ideas to life.
However, Sesinyi believes the conversation should not focus on whether AI can create stories, but rather on how it can support the people who do.
“AI has an important role to play in filmmaking, but its greatest value lies in enhancing ideas that already exist, not replacing the human imagination and lived experiences that give stories meaning,” says Sesinyi.
Storytelling, she argues, has always been rooted in memory, culture, emotion and lived experience. While AI can analyse patterns, generate dialogue and assist with creative processes, it cannot experience grief, celebrate triumph, understand cultural nuance or build the trust required to tell authentic community stories.
“It cannot sit with elders and listen to oral histories. It cannot understand the subtle emotions behind conversations or appreciate the traditions that shape a community’s identity. Those are uniquely human experiences that remain the foundation of meaningful storytelling.”
Sesinyi says this conversation is particularly relevant in South Africa, where many rural communities continue to be underrepresented in film and television. Too often, their stories are either overlooked or interpreted by people with limited understanding of their lived realities.
“As filmmakers, we have a responsibility to ensure these voices are represented with honesty, dignity and authenticity. The people who have lived these experiences should be the ones telling them.”
Rather than viewing AI as a threat, Sesinyi believes filmmakers should leverage it to improve the production process. AI can assist with research, production scheduling, concept art, translation and other repetitive tasks, allowing creatives to dedicate more time to developing compelling narratives and building meaningful relationships with the communities they represent.
“Technology should empower storytellers, not replace them.”
Passionate about growing the film industry beyond South Africa’s traditional production centres, Sesinyi believes responsible use of AI could help emerging filmmakers from underserved regions improve production quality, compete on larger platforms and create greater opportunities for local talent.
She stresses, however, that technological advancement should never come at the expense of originality, creativity or cultural authenticity.
“Our greatest resource has never been software or machines. It has always been our people.”
According to Sesinyi, every community holds stories worth telling, every family carries histories worth preserving and every culture deserves to be documented by those who understand it best.
“The future of filmmaking should not be a choice between technology and people. It should be a partnership where AI handles the mechanics while humans remain the heart of storytelling.”
She believes audiences will continue to connect most deeply with stories grounded in genuine human experiences.
“People don’t simply remember beautifully edited films or technically perfect scripts. They remember how a story made them feel. And emotion will always belong to the people who lived it.”
