Nadine Kriegelstein: Why Real Films Still Need Real People

You started at ORF, Austria's national broadcaster, at 17. Today, you're head of creative strategy at one of Vienna's leading film production companies. What's your journey? Wow, where should I start? I think I always knew, I was always drawn to the media industry, you know, so when I started, besides school, I started at the TV station. I knew this is what, yeah, makes my heart happy and especially life. I think the big shows were drawing my attention. And then, yeah, afterwards there was advertising, so I stepped into commercials and then image films. I also did one movie to see how a real movie set works. And now it came all back to Das R&, which is this great production house and I can do various things, you know, documentaries, but also branded entertainment. Yeah, that's all, it in a nutshell. It's nice to experiment and different stuff, right? It is, it is. Your session asks, has AI killed the video star? And you've promised not to give a comfortable answer. So let's start here. Has this question has an answer and what is it? I don't think that we have found the answer yet. And that is why the question mark mattered so much to me. And yes, I didn't want to have a satisfying answer for the audience, but I just wanted to be completely transparent, you know, and honest about also what we are doing as a film production. How are we handling the situation from day to day? But no one knows what's going to happen in the future. And I think that's what's going to happen in, I don't know, a month. There's a view of AI that is like democratizes video production and frees creatives to focus more on what matters. And there's another view that it's fundamentally changes what craft means. What is your stand? I'm torn, honestly. Like there are both sides and a lot of people are scared out there because of their jobs. And I so feel that when it comes to the craft. And cinematographers, sound engineers. So that's a real issue. And I think we have to be clear about that. And then, yes, of course, there are also positive sides to AI. And I also tried to include that in my talk that we shouldn't forget that. So it's not the solution to just be scared of it or just hate it because we will have to deal with it one way or another. You've won a Telly Awards, CCA Venus, which is one of Austria's most prestigious creative awards. And you directed the final commercial for the Life Ball. One of the world's most iconic charity events. When you've built a career at that level of craft, how do you watch what AI is doing to video both the slop but also the genuinely impressive work? Well, I'm concerned about it. And I have this feeling that we are not valuing quality anymore as much as we should. So I'm very happy that these projects got recognition. And I just hope for the future that we will still see that this is a real difference. You know what it takes to make one of these projects. It's so much more than AI can ever do. And I think it's not only about the idea. It's, like you said, also about the craft. 23 takes a strong position, right? We are human first. No fake people on camera. No synthetic voices, for example. Do you think the industry is ready to draw these lines? Or are we still pretending that this is not a choice? Yeah, I was actually afraid that you would boo me on stage because I completely... I was afraid that we as a film production already crossed that line. So we were using people and prompting people. But I also explained why we had to do it. It's for this opportunity to pitch ideas or like trailers for films that don't yet exist. So that's why we do it. We use them for telling our story, which with much more consistency than stock videos could do that in the past. But of course, the goal is to make the films, you know, and not with AI. To just pitch it to investors so they can get a better idea of it. But then to realize it in reality with real people. Yeah, I hope we can draw the line. I know that there are some strong voices out there and they are also trying to protect that. And that is really, really important. And it gives me hope. Yeah, that's good. And for a producer or director in the room whose professional identity is so tied on making things. What do you think their careers will look like in five years? Can we predict that? I mean, we cannot. At least I cannot. But I really want to encourage them to don't stop. We will need that. And I'm also a big fan of the analog media. That's also a point that I always highlight out. So I think we should try to experiment with different media formats and just value the craft and the talent that we have in it. And the joy that we find doing that. That's so important. Well, my last question for you. If you were to say one thing for someone here at 23 Summit who wants to do something. At 23 Summit who wants to go back to their organization and push video forward. What would you say? Do it. Of course. I mean, yes, video will be the number one medium for sure in the future in whatever form. It's not only AI. It's still real. So we can enjoy the variety of it. And we are still in the golden age of video. Yes. Thank you so much, Nadine. It was so nice to hear from you. Thank you.