A recent AI trend has spread across social media where people will use AI to copy famous Japanese film company Studio Ghibli’s iconic art style. How did it start, and is it worth it??
How did the trend start?
In mid-March, OpenAI released a new image generator which is powered by GPT-40. This AI program is able to create even better AI art, though there are still some issues– like confusing backgrounds and wonky hands.
Unfortunately, AI art continues to improve daily, and it has become even more difficult to distinguish real art from AI copies. The most recent trend which began right after the release of the new image generator is the “Studio Ghibli trend.”
For this trend, people will submit art to the generator, and it will apply a filter that works to try and capture the original Studio Ghibli art style. This serene, simple yet beautiful style has been created by hand by co-founder Hayao Miyazaki and the dozens of animators who diligently work to hand-draw and watercolor each frame of animation.
While many have found a large positive to this trend that allows them to produce high-quality art, many question the ethics of the situation, including Miyazaki himself.
Studio Ghibli co-founder’s opinion
A few years ago, before AI art hit mainstream media, Studio Ghibli was shown an animation produced using AI. Among the members of the team there to witness it was Miyazaki himself, the 84-year-old co-founder.
After first watching the AI animation, Miyazaki was quick to insult it.
“I am utterly disgusted. I would never wish to incorporate this technology into my work at all,” Miyazaki said.
He and Studio Ghibli’s producers questioned what the purpose of AI art was, and no one could provide a solid or reasonable answer. Either way, it is obvious that Studio Ghibli does not support the use of AI in its art– making it all the more disappointing for this trend to remain so popular.
“I feel like we are nearing to the end of times,” Miyazaki said at the end of the video. “We humans are losing faith in ourselves.
The co-founder of Studio Ghibli does not believe AI art is worth it. What do those on social media and Wright State University think about it?
Outside opinions
Mayank Dharamdasani is the President of the Anime Club. He is also an artist, and he has strong opinions about this recent AI art trend.
“[I don’t use AI] because I think it’s disrespecting Miyazaki. I feel like if [people] want to learn about art, they could try to draw [art] themselves so they can see how much struggle artists have to make that kind of stuff, then they’ll be able to appreciate it more, because [otherwise] they don’t appreciate that art as much,” Dharamdasani said.
It is also important to not let AI become so popular, especially to create artwork that copies the work of others. AI always mimics other peoples’ works because it directly uses other art to inspire its own algorithm, but things become complex when AI mimics popular art styles.
By copying Studio Ghibli’s iconic look, or any other major animation company, it increases the risk of the companies deciding to use AI rather than real artists.
“... what people who make it popular don’t understand is that the studios, like Studio Ghibli’s owners, are actually businessmen. So they don’t care about the art, they don’t care about the artists, they care about the economics. So if you make it too popular what will happen is they will think ‘Then why do we even need artists? Let’s just make our stuff with AI,’” Dharamdasani said.
Using AI would technically save money and allow for movies or shows to be produced quicker; however, it devalues the work of real people who have dedicated time and effort to hand-making art.
One prime example of hand-drawn Studio Ghibli art is the mildly infamous 4-second crowd scene from The Wind Rises. This scene was completely hand-drawn by mainly one artist; at 24 frames a second and dozens of tiny details, it took the animators 15 months to draw it.
In an absolutely excellent video by Instagram artist ssavaart, or Scott Sava, he attempted to draw himself in the Studio Ghibli style rather than using a filter. In the video, he expresses the struggles he had with the drawing, as well as how he embraced these mistakes to try again.
“I know that part of the process is making mistakes. Failing is a part of learning, an important part. Don’t be afraid of making mistakes. That fear will keep you from trying new things. It’ll stop you from becoming a better artist. It’ll keep you from becoming a better you,” Sava said in his video.
He continued the video by practicing various versions of how he would look in the style before moving on to an ink and watercolor piece. In the end, he creates a beautiful piece that is, in the opinion of the commenters, better than his first attempt!
His video reflects the views of many artists online; that trying to make the art yourself is in and of itself a necessary and important part of the experience. Without it, you will not be able to improve, and it will be impossible to be proud of your own work.
One commenter said, “See, this is the part of the process that AI artists wanna skip, the failure. It’s uncomfortable, so they ask a computer to learn for them and show them the only result.”
Another commenter agreed: “Miyazaki spent years trying to give life to the characters, he tried and failed and tried again and eventually succeeded. We aren’t meant to top [it] on the first try, that is the entire point. AI takes away all this.”
These commenters, and many others, point out how human the process of creation really is. It is an important step in everyone’s journey to try something new, whether the activity be artistic, physical or something else.
Failure is human; many people have been upset watching AI art dominate trends for a while now, and they can only hope that we are able to remember the importance of creating art on our own.
It is important to also recognize and promote human artists, as AI art puts their social media engagement at risk. Dharamdasani is a part of a small art studio called Smaran Studios, which is currently teasing Project Entity, a psychological thriller manga.
Follow their Instagram page to stay up-to-date as more information comes out. Also do not forget to support artists as you see them; this can range from financial purchases to promoting them using social media. Community engagement is incredibly important!
