Daniel Kwan’s 3-Year Deep Dive Into AI: 10 Takeaways to Future-Proof Your Craft

As filmmakers, we are used to living in the tension between "the way things are" and "the way they could be." But right now, that tension feels more like a fracture. We’re standing at a crossroads where real cameras and real sets are being challenged by algorithms that can conjure reality out of thin air. It’s enough to make any human creator want to crawl into a dark hole and never come out.

At SXSW 2026, the producers behind the Academy Award-winning documentary The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist , directed by Daniel Roher and Charlie Tyrell, sat down for a raw conversation about the high-stakes future of our industry in the shadow of AI filmmaking. The panel featured producers Daniel Kwan (the visionary co-director of Everything Everywhere All At Once), Ted Tremper (a veteran of The Daily Show and I Love You, America), and Diane Becker (the Oscar-winning producer behind Navalny).

The team spent three years staring into the abyss of artificial intelligence. Their takeaway? AI is the existential crisis of our time, but it might also be our greatest hope for a more human future.

Here are our favorite takeaways for every filmmaker trying to navigate this brave new world.

1. Shift from "What to Think" to "How to Think"

In an industry obsessed with the latest AI tool and Sora updates, we often lose sight of the bigger picture. The goal isn't to master every AI platform, but rather to understand the drivers behind them. For the "Apocaloptimist" team, the film became a framework for processing a world that changes every two weeks.

"The way we frame the conversation and the way that we arm the audience with not what to think, but how to think about AI, that was sort of our goal... no matter what happens, you can see it through a lens of, oh, what are the underlying drivers? Why is this technology being built the way it’s being built?" — Daniel Kwan

2. Grieve the Future You Thought You’d Have

As creators, many of us feel a true sense of loss for the old way of doing things, the traditions that have been forged over decades, even the fading certainty of the craft. Kwan argues that we can't move toward a solution until we stop pretending things are going back to normal. We have to mourn the "Old Hollywood" to build the "New Creative Economy."

"What is inevitable is that the future we thought we were going to live in no longer exists... that requires a level of collective mourning and collective grief... The moment you allow yourself to feel the feelings, say goodbye, cry... learning how to grieve will bring you through the problems." — Daniel Kwan

3. Practice "Intellectual Humility" in the Face of Hyper-Objects

AI is what theorists call a "hyper-object"—something so massive and multidimensional that no single human mind can fully grasp it. For filmmakers, this means checking our egos at the door. Whether you’re a pro-AI early adopter or a staunch traditionalist, you likely only see 1% of the picture.

"Intellectual humility is required because we actually as people cannot wrap our mind around all of it... By definition, one can't know all of it. And so intellectual humility is required because we actually as people cannot wrap our mind around all of it." — Ted Tremper

4. Reclaim "Consent" in the Creative Process

We’re often told that AI is an "inevitable" tide, but the panelists reminded us that we have power as a collective of users and creators. Just as the industry pushed back against certain uses of AI during the strikes, we must continue to be vocal about how these tools are integrated into our workflows and distribution.

"AI is everywhere. So it’s like we didn’t consent to that... Now is the time more than ever that you, your $20 a month actually can create... actual change regardless of what the actual desires of the person running the company are." — Ted Tremper

5. Focus on "Pro-Social" Technology

If the current algorithms are designed for "brain rot" and polarization, filmmakers have a responsibility to look for (and build) tools that foster consensus and connection. The panel pointed to platforms like Polis and Metagov as examples of "alignment tech" that aim to upgrade how we coordinate as humans.

"The only dividing line that matters is the line that divides those who want to work together and those who do not. And I do believe that our way through this AI conversation is building the biggest coalition of people who are willing to work together and putting aside some really difficult ideological differences." — Daniel Kwan

6. Lean Into "Generative Conflict"

Great films aren't made by committees where everyone agrees; they are made through the friction of different perspectives. The same applies to the AI debate. We shouldn't avoid the "anti-AI" vs. "pro-AI" tension; we should use it to find a middle ground that protects human artists while utilizing technical breakthroughs.

"Recognizing the difference between destructive conflict and generative conflict, because you need conflict to create new ideas. Conflict is actually at the root of transformation, evolution, all these things. And we need to be able to build up the muscles to have a lot of healthy, good faith arguments." — Daniel Kwan

7. Protect the "Bird Song" of Your Creativity

The most disruptive thing a filmmaker can do in an AI-saturated world is to lean into the things that aren't "useful" to a GDP-driven algorithm. AI can replicate patterns, but it cannot replicate the specific, lived experience of your unique human perspective—only you have the "bird song that you were put on this planet to do," as Kwan puts it.

"If the algorithm’s telling you that the thing that you love to do doesn’t have a use for the GDP, let’s nurture that thing... Breaking free from this technological determinism... a lot of that comes through actually imagination." — Daniel Kwan

8. Be an "Apocaloptimist"

The term—coined in the film—is the ultimate middle ground for the modern creator. It’s the ability to look at the "end of the world" (as we know it) and see a beginning. For Becker, this means finding the corners of the world you’re passionate about and fighting for them.

"The world’s always ending, but the world’s always beginning too... Pick your corners that you’re passionate about, that you want to know more about and start advocating for yourself." — Diane Becker

Why This Matters for Us

We talk a lot about "democratizing" filmmaking here. And guess what...AI tools have the potential to give a kid with a laptop the power of a VFX house. Generative AI is changing filmmaking...we know this, and that's really cool. But it also risks devaluing the human labor that makes cinema worth watching.

The takeaway from this SXSW panel is clear: Don’t be a passive observer of the revolution. Be an "Apocaloptimist." Sure, learn the tools, but understand the drivers. Be an advocate for ethical AI. And most importantly, never stop fighting for the human element that no algorithm can replicate.

For those looking to get involved in the conversation or find resources for advocacy, the team has launched an impact campaign at theaidoc.com. As filmmakers, we are the architects of the "imagination trajectories" that Kwan mentioned. If we can't imagine a future where humans and technology coexist healthily, no one will.

Let's get to work!

Be sure to check out the rest of our SXSW 2026 coverage!