From Film Sets to Street Stalls
- Iwata Sam
- Jul 5
- 1 min read
Updated: Jul 7
I was at my DOP’s wedding a few months back. Reunited with many friends in the industry. They were joking — half serious — that they might have to sell street food in the near future because of AI. That laughter carried the weight of fear.
And this morning, while I was doing my routine and checking the daily news,
THIS struck me hard.
A well‑known actor, once making RMB20,000 (USD3,000) per day in China’s booming short drama industry, now sells vegetables in his hometown. Why? Because 95% of short dramas are AI‑made. Two million jobs gone. Overnight, actors, directors, and crew became obsolete.
This isn’t just about one man. It’s about the collapse of identity. When craft is erased, storytellers are exiled from their own calling. When stories are built to hook, not to move, audiences are conditioned into silence.
AI is not neutral. It accelerates production but hollows meaning. It creates abundance but strips dignity. That vegetable stall is more than survival — it’s a symbol of what happens when artistry is traded for efficiency.
I am not against AI if it serves as a tool to help people live better lives. But seems like it is going the opposite way, and that’s where the danger lies.
So I ask: how many more will be forced to trade their dreams for survival? And when the last storyteller is gone, will anyone even notice?
Fuck it! I'm too old of this shit! I'm gonna spend my afternoon watching
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
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IG: @iwatasam
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