Worried about AI destroying your dreams of Hollywood?
Advice from a TV writer/author
Creatives around the world are worried about how AI is going to destroy the arts. As someone who has made his entire living as a TV writer, here’s my take:
First, I’m encouraged by the public’s reaction to AI. Overwhelmingly, they seem to want their art created by humans, not computers. At least that’s the sense that I get on my social media posts.
That said, I suspect that won’t stop Hollywood studios from using it. The studios are all about maximizing profits, and because using AI will certainly lower production costs, they’ll be using it as often as they can get away with.
At some point, the internet will become so flooded with AI, that it’ll be impossible to distinguish human generated content from computer generated content. Truth will be indiscernable from fiction.
If AI is a revolution, that’s the moment when humans fight back.
Because we’ll no longer to be able to trust anything we see on line, in-person events will become more treasured. It’s the only thing we’ll be able to believe with our eyes.
TikTok creator CatGTP calls this moment, “The Analogue Renaissance. I think that’s the perfect description.
The Analogue Renaissance
is live theater. And the barrier to entry for live theater is extremely low. Almost any writer or performer can put a stage show. They can submit to community theater or just rent a small, black box theater and put it on themselves.
This isn’t even cost prohibitive. I’m talking about theaters with under 50 seats.
Will you get rich this way? Probably not. But if you’re in it for the money, the arts isn’t for you.
More importantly, if you can’t keep a live audience absolutely riveted for 60-80 minutes, then you’re not ready to write for TV or film anyway. The monetary stakes are much higher, and you’re going to have a hard time finding investors.
But if you can build something amazing — from the ground up — eventually Hollywood will find you.
I’m not making this up. In recent history, this is how Fleabag and Reindeer Baby made it to Hollywood. Both started as small theatrical shows performing at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
And it’s why I’m bringing my solo show there too.
Why take it to the Fringe when I’m already a writer/producer? Theoretically, I could pitch it to Hollywood whenever I wanted. But if I build something amazing — from the ground up — Hollywood will find me. And I’ll be in a much stronger negotiating position.
I invite you to see this show for yourself. Notice I don’t even have a set. I have one prop — a wooden stool which I sometimes use to represent other objects. Everything else I paint in your mind.
I’ll be performing A Paper Orchestra at:
The Hollywood Fringe in June 2025.
The Edinburgh Fringe in August 2025.
Philadelphia City Winery in October.