“Midnight Horror Story” PD Explains The Use Of AI Instead Of Actors, “Due To Reduction In Production Cost”

“Midnight Horror Story Season 4” broadcast on July 14th introduced its story in a video with AI-generated images instead of actors reenacting the situation.

Recently, AI announcers and AI images have been widely used by broadcasters, and “Midnight Horror Story” has also introduced AI images. Previously, they would cast actors to reenact scenes and use illustrations for scenes that were difficult to act, however, the recent episode surprised many people with the insertion of AI images.

After the broadcast, many viewers poured negative reactions on the program’s bulletin board, raising concerns that reenactment actors being replaced by AI would cause many to lose their jobs.

On July 17th, PD Lim Chae-won, who is in charge of directing “Midnight Horror Story”, responded to related questions via SPOTV News.

The PD said, “I planned to use AI Images in season 4, and I’ve applied it in the last four episodes”. Regarding viewers’ negative responses, the PD said, “The majority of viewers complained that AI images hinder their immersion and we are seriously taking it into consideration. It is difficult for AI to create consistent images so we cannot apply them throughout the entire episode. We are planning to reduce the amount of AI images and replace them with illustrations in the future”.

Regarding the reason for their use of AI images, PD Lim said, “The worsening broadcasting environment has caused terrestrial programs to suffer reductions in production costs. Producing AI images is easier than making illustrations. Compared to the budget for reenactments of actors or illustrations, AI images can be produced faster at a lower cost. The use of AI images is an inevitable choice to reduce production cost”. 

When asked about the plan to replace reenactment actors with AI, the PD said, “We’ll think of the direction that helps viewers enjoy the show better. Thank you”.