Jon M. Chu says AI couldn’t have created one of the best moments in ‘Wicked’

If there is anyone Whoever understands the importance of viral marketing, it is Evil: for good Director Jon M. Chu.

At WIRED’s Big Interview event in San Francisco, former YouTuber W Crazy rich asians The director said that working with actors like Justin Bieber taught him the value of connecting with fans online during the creation process. While directing Bieber’s concert film, never say neverIn the late 2000s, Cho said the 14-year-old star used Twitter to introduce Cho to fans. After Bieber posted a clip joking that the director was following him on set, Cho told WIRED senior culture editor Manisha Krishnan that he started watching his online following grow by the tens of thousands of people almost immediately, which really cemented the power of the direct connection with the fan base.

Cho said that working with Bieber made him realize that “the story is being told even before you start filming, and after you finish the movie, you have to continue that story.” That’s why he believes fans felt so invested in him evil– And its sequel, Evil: for good-And why the film’s marketing and press tours relied heavily on the relationships the actors built during filming.

The bond, like the one between stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, came from the immense pressure the crew felt to make something that was not only cool, but bankable. “We’ve only had each other, so we’re very close-knit,” Chu said, likening the relationship to that of Silicon Valley developers working long hours together to deliver a new product.

Photo: Annie Noelker

Photo: Annie Noelker

A Bay Area native, Chu said he always felt partly indebted to the world of technology because of his start in entertainment. In the 1990s, when Zhou was just a teenager, the technology-oriented customers at his parents’ Chinese restaurant would offer him computers, video cards and software when they heard he was interested in filmmaking, giving him an advantage over his fellow students when he went to college at the University of Southern California. “I generously built this place, and I feel a great responsibility when I return,” Zhou said.

The director also said that because of his long relationship with technology, he is fairly open when it comes to the interaction between artificial intelligence and filmmaking. The manager is “fascinated” by the potential of AI to collect and organize information, and has put effort into learning how to use AI in his own process because he wants to understand its potential.

On the other hand, Zhou said, when making it evil He felt there was value in having practical sets and being able to improvise rather than having to write every bit of dialogue, camera movement or characterization in advance.