David Blecken
Oct 17, 2017

McCann's AI-CD tries its hand at a music video (sans music)

“Create a stimulating video that conveys hunting instinct through a tone of ennui using a school motif and objectification.”

McCann Worldgroup Japan’s ‘AI creative director’ (AI-CD) has reared its robotic, er... arm, again. Its latest venture is a music video with no music.

The AI-CD is an experimental piece of technology designed to support (not supplant) human creative direction. It works by feeding on a large volume of historical data as to what has been successful in terms of past content.

A robotic prop McCann uses to represent the AI-CD concept.

In this project, it developed a promotional film for Magical Punchline, a Japanese pop group affiliated with the Pony Canyon record label. Unusually however, the song is still in development (the beat in the video above is a placeholder only). Instead of taking inspiration from the music itself, the AI-CD focused on music-centric TV commercials. Based on its analysis, it recommended the following creative direction:

Create a stimulating video that conveys hunting instinct through a tone of ennui using a school motif and objectification.

McCann says this is a world first—at least in terms of a reverse-order music video being produced under the direction of an AI system. We can’t verify that, but it does seem unlikely that anyone else would have attempted such a thing. The closest example that comes to mind is a film by Dentsu for Brian Eno from last year.

The exercise for Magical Punchline presented unique challenges in terms of dancing and lip-synching. The production team eventually settled on a tempo of 135 beats per minute and avoided clear shots of the singers’ mouths.

Campaign’s view: The first question that comes to mind might be ‘why?’. But it’s undeniably a fun and intriguing exercise, and the video is actually not too bad, especially relative to the AI-CD’s first effort at directing a TVC, which was just too random. Even without music, the video manages to create a somewhat dark atmosphere.

Personally, we find high school imagery a bit tiresome, but the AI-CD’s insistence on using it is testament to its popularity. Still, the AI-CD’s handlers need to guard against drawing on past references too closely, as in the hooded figure that presumably resembles the “hunting instinct”. Striking a balance between being relevant but unexpected will be key to the success of the AI-CD’s future efforts.

Source:
Campaign Japan

Related Articles

Just Published

3 hours ago

How AIA is changing behavior through communication

AIA Group CMO Stuart Spencer discusses how the insurer is changing perceptions about what it means to be healthy, and about its own industry in the process.

4 hours ago

2025 Cannes Contenders: Bear Meets Eagle On Fire’s ...

The Aussie studio's creative directors Cass Jam and Mark Carbone reveal their top campaigns that combine wit, practicality, and cinematic flair ahead of Cannes Lions 2025.

5 hours ago

A new agency business model for the post-gen AI ...

In this sequel to his analysis of gen AI's impact on agency business models, marketing consultant Andreas Moelmann suggests agency profitability lies in creative consulting.

5 hours ago

What headwinds? Why Jane Lin-Baden doesn’t fear ...

The Asia-Pacific CEO of Publicis Groupe is still bullish on China, unfazed by scaled rivals and sees a new future for creative through media.