The Writers Guild of Canada has called on the federal government to play a “leading role” in the protection of “human creators” as the use of artificial intelligence (AI) rises within the international screen sector.

The guild published a letter on Tuesday (June 27), written by assistant executive director Neal McDougall and addressed to Minister of Canadian Heritage Pablo Rodriguez and Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry François-Philippe Champagne. The letter is dated for June 1.

“I am writing you with respect to our growing concerns around the rapid development of artificial intelligence and the threat it represents to Canadian artists and creators,” reads the letter, noting that the rise of ChatGPT and other generative AI tools has led to a “paradigm shift” in their use to create audiovisual content in place of humans.

The WGC argues that AI-generated work is “purely profit-driven, not culture- or public policy-driven,” emphasizing that the government’s role is to “preserve culture and facilitate cultural expression.”

“The use of AI already in children’s programming is especially alarming, yet is just one possible worrying outcome among many,” reads the letter.

The guild’s letter proposed two actions. The first is to ensure that AI cannot be recognized as an author under the Copyright Act, and to protect the rights of human creators. The second is that cultural funds, including Telefilm Canada, the Canada Media Fund, and the Canadian Film or Video Tax Credit, should “remain for the benefit of human creators.”

The WGC also noted that the Société des auteurs de radio, télévision et cinema (SARTEC) has similar concerns, and both the WGC and SARTEC “are united in our support of Canadian creators, and our strong belief that AI must not undermine screenwriters’ economic wellbeing or human dignity as artists.”

“We hear the growing concerns of the Writers Guild of Canada, and all Canadians regarding the threat of artificial intelligence to the arts and its creators. The intersection of generative AI and creative arts is an issue that many countries are currently looking into, and Canada is no exception. We will take the time to discuss with experts on how we can address the situation and determine the appropriate tools to protect Canadian creators,” said a spokesperson for Minister Champagne in a statement.

The topic of AI is already on the minds of Canadian legislators. Bill C-27, which completed its second reading at the House of Commons on April 24, proposes the enactment of the Artificial Intelligence and Data Act to regulate the use of AI systems and “adopt measures to mitigate risks of harm and biased output.”

The Conseil de l’innovation du Québec (CIQ) has launched consultations with the cultural sector with the aim of understanding the potential impact of its use and the best ways to regulate its development.

The call for industry consultations launched as part of the mandate of Quebec’s Ministry of Economic Development, Innovation and Export Trade.

The CIQ consultations include topics such as a government framework for AI, the impact on labour and employment, investment into AI research, the use of AI by the government and the potential impact to society. The submission deadline is July 14.

AI is also one of the core issues in the current Writers Guild of America strike, and a potential strike from the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). The WGA is fighting for regulations around the use of AI to create screen-based content, while SAG-AFTRA is seeking rules around using AI to generate an actor’s likeness.

During a panel discussion at the Banff World Media Festival earlier this month, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law writer Kara Brown argued that generative AI is another tech fad akin to Bitcoin or self-driving cars, and studios won’t be able to copyright any content created from them.

“[Producers] need our work to feed into the machine, it’s not coming up with [original scripts] on its own,” she said. “It sounds like you only need one really terrible lawsuit from a writer [such as] J.J. Abrams because you fed his script into a [generative AI tool] without permission.”

This is Us writer Elan Mastai, a member of both the WGC and the WGA, similarly predicts that AI won’t be the money-making machine some believe it will be, but that the industry needs “guardrails.”

“I think everybody in the entertainment industry is lucky the strike is happening right now, because if we’d done it six months ago it wouldn’t be on our radar, and six months from now it might be too late,” said Mastai. “In some ways I think it’s going to save the studios from themselves… if we can get some common sense regulations in place.”

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