Over the last twelve months, we have seen a major spike in the way that theatre companies are using AI to influence the way they operate and also even create assets for their marketing campaigns. As we step into this new world of AI, we have to accept it is here to stay, although theatre companies and artists that use AI to promote their shows should be aware of some key points which may hinder the advertisement of their production.
Before we go into these points, we need to highlight why many companies are choosing Chat GPT or other AI hosts to create artwork or posters for their marketing campaigns. First of all, expenditure – it’s cheaper for a company to create a poster via AI than it is to hire a graphics designer or pay for graphic design software to create a high-quality library of marketing assets. Some companies or artists simply do not have the budget with the spiraling hire and technical costs, which is completely understandable. Secondly, time – rather than spending hours designing the poster, they get the immediate result by typing a description and then allowing the AI host to provide them with what they have asked for.
Now onto why using AI ultimately will put audience members, plus potential actors, sponsors, and creatives off from working on your production. Identity – you as an artist or your company should have an identity within your social and physical imprint, where people are able to identify it’s you. You may have a cracking logo which you can put on any poster, but if you’re trying to promote an original production with AI, then you are removing any form of originality. AI is instantly recognisable, mainly due to how militant and void of unique charm it is. If you were to make an original low-budget minimalistic poster, audiences would appreciate this more than an AI-generated poster, which does not represent you, your company or the production you are putting on.
Fringe pages are filling up right now with artwork that all looks the same because they’re all produced by AI. When it comes to getting bums on seats in August, they’re going to struggle. Their company will lack a unique selling point of an original poster; AI posters do look generic, and their identity will drown in the Fringe’s programme, which is filled to the brim with eye-catching posters that have either had people spend big or little money on to ensure they pull audiences in from the flyer alone.
Another point is available resources – whilst you may think there is no alternative to using AI, the internet is brimming with ways for you to create artwork or posters for minimal (or no) cost. Canva is a perfect example, a simple to use in-browser host, whilst yes, the pro (paid) package is the best version, there is a free version, and even utilising a free trial of pro to get all your media assets created and saved will look ten times better than AI.
If you are producing an existing entity, utilise the logo packs that licensing suppliers provide, of course there is the fee of roughly £100, it will mean that you are utilising the professional assets that people recognise and help gain audience interest. On the other side of this, please check the licensing agreement you have for your production, as some rights suppliers are restricting use of AI for marketing on some of their titles. Lastly, utilise people you know, if you are useless at drawing or graphic design, ask your friends or family! There may be someone you know who would love to create some posters and artwork for you; they may ask for a small charge, or even just a pint the next time you’re at the pub.
Lastly, environmental impact – yes, the bit that everyone knows about. AI uses about 500ml (one bottle) of water for every 10 to 50 prompts. As much as you are one singular person, lessening that environmental impact as an industry collective can help ensure that we are stopping the harm that this new technology is causing, as I’m sure in years to come this will hit the headlines more and more.
So the answer to whether theatre companies should be using AI for their artwork or posters is – no. Each artist, theatre company, and production should have its own identity. Using AI removes any creative potential you have in promoting your show. Instead, it ultimately hampers your social and physical marketing footprint by fading into the generic void that is quickly appearing in the amateur and early career scene.
Theatre Scotland 