Just Shoot It: A Podcast about Filmmaking, Screenwriting and Directing

Is AI a Tool? w/Sarah May Bates and Susan Song - Just Shoot It 516

February 26, 2026·1 hr 21 min·2 clips

Sarah May Bates says AI should be used for "rotoscoping" and "background replacement," not as a blanket replacement.

1. Just Shoot It 516, "Is AI a Tool? w/Sarah May Bates and Susan Song," centers on AI in filmmaking, screenwriting, and directing, with Matt and Warren Kaplan steering the discussion toward commercial production and acting jobs. 2. Sarah May Bates returns as a director who works in major-brand AI production, and Susan Song joins as an actor asking what the changes mean for performance work. 3. The episode asks whether AI is a replacement or a tool, and Sarah’s answer repeatedly lands on specific uses like "rotoscoping," "background replacement," and scene expansion. 4. Warren Kaplan raises the actor-side worry that auditions have dropped and that AI could push working performers out of commercials and social content. 5. Sarah says she still wants "traditional post" for many jobs, but she uses AI for tasks like relighting, green-screen replacements, and versioning across markets and aspect ratios. 6. The discussion also covers SAG, DGA, and union vetting, with Sarah saying legit production has to be "so buttoned up" that prompts, insurance, and legal review all matter. 7. Susan points out that the pressure is not only AI, because non-union work, influencer campaigns, and production moving elsewhere are also shrinking opportunities. 8. Sarah argues that AI can create more work overall, even as it shifts jobs away from people trained in Nuke, Silhouette, Maya, or traditional roto pipelines. 9. Warren and Sarah both say the strongest value still comes from human performers, memorable talent, and auteurs who decide when a scene should stay practical. 10. Listeners who follow commercial production, union issues, and AI workflows will get the most from this.

As heard by us

A grounded conversation about AI actors, brand campaigns, and disclosure rules for generated media.

AI enters Just Shoot It by way of a practical question about creative work: what changes when AI-made actors and social content start showing up in campaigns?

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Why you'd press play

You want a grounded conversation about AI actors, fake influencers, and where brands may draw the line.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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