Seth Rogen’s new TV series recently premiered on AppleTV+, with The Studio being a satirical take on the film industry. One of the biggest talking points of the first episode was the guest appearance of acclaimed director Martin Scorsese.
In the first episode, Rogen’s studio head, Matthew “Matt” Remick, does something so ostensibly wrong to the filmmaker that, despite the show’s satirical tone, there is something deeply upsetting about how Scorsese is treated.
Moreover, with the recent ChatGPT update allowing users to essentially use Studio Ghibli’s unique art style as a filter for photos, the satire in The Studio became even more poignant. Here’s why I feel the current state of the art in Hollywood and beyond is deeply upsetting.
Seth Rogen’s The Studio satirizes the sorry state of Hollywood
Seth Rogen plays the role of Matthew “Matt” Remick, the new head of the fictional Continental Studios. His struggles to balance his desire to make good films and the industry’s demands were inspired by Rogen and his writing partner Evan Goldberg’s personal experience.
In the show’s very first episode, Remick’s struggles are highlighted as he deals with filmmaker Martin Scorsese’s final project. Remick purchases Scorsese’s screenplay so that the film is never made, instead greenlighting a movie about Kool-Aid.
The episode’s events perfectly highlight Hollywood’s greed taking precedence over making good art. Moreover, seeing a filmmaker like Scorsese, who has dedicated decades to creating a unique cinematic style, getting screwed was upsetting an hilarious at the same time for me. As a result, the show’s satire is really on point and genuinely indicative of Hollywood’s creative bankruptcy.
The Studio makes ChatGPT’s latest theft even more heartbreaking
The Studio‘s premiere coincided with ChatGPT rolling out its latest update, which allows users to “Ghbilify” their photographs. The AI can now replicate the art style of Studio Ghibli founder Hayao Miyazaki, who spent decades perfecting it.
Miyazaki’s filmmaking philosophy is intrinsically linked to his art style, which makes his art truly valuable and worth noticing. I have always felt that the true beauty of Miyazaki’s art lies in his ability as a storyteller, harnessing the unique art style to tell deeply human stories that otherwise cannot exist in film.
Therefore, ChatGPT stealing his artwork and using it to train AI models to replicate it without understanding the pathos behind it is another heartbreaking example of the powers that be not only not understanding good art but also being greedy like Hollywood studios, who have called for more AI inclusion in the industry.
Ultimately, when an entire industry starts prioritizing profits over making good art, we get something like Hollywood’s current state, as big-budget films fail to appeal to audiences, another talking point satirically addressed in Rogen’s series. Add the rise of AI into the mix and you have effectively killed the beauty of a medium which is all about capturing the essence of being human.
The Studio is streaming on Apple TV+.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
