AI Won’t Free Artists from Burnout

“AI will free artists to be more creative.” It’s a compelling narrative—but often a naive one.

In a recent interview, Runway CEO Cris Valenzuela said that AI tools will help VFX and CG artists get their weekends back. As a VFX supervisor who has always pushed back hard against burning out artists, I really want that to be true. But the reality across much of the industry is more complicated.

When something becomes faster or easier, it doesn’t always create breathing room. More often, it leads to more revisions, later notes, shrinking timelines and less space to say no. The thinking becomes: “If it’s so fast now, surely you can just do another version by tomorrow?”

I’ve been fortunate to work with companies that respect artists’ time and protect against this kind of scope creep. But without a culture that protects artists, faster tools risk becoming another way to compress the schedule and squeeze more out of already-overstretched teams.

This is about making sure the benefits of new technology actually reach the people doing the work.