Experienced Hollywood writers, directors and producers are increasingly taking gig work training AI models to replicate their own professional skills, as tightening earnings and a slump in entertainment industry jobs push them towards alternative income. Paid between $12 and $200 an hour by agencies with contracts held by major AI firms including Anthropic and OpenAI, these creatives teach systems tasks such as writing screenplays, building shooting schedules and devising production pitch decks, prompting some to describe the work with fatalism or guilt.

Screenwriter and producer Ruth Fowler, known for BBC One's Rules of the Game and Paramount Plus's Little Disasters, said production work is down around 35%, pushing her towards AI training tasks such as scheduling a hypothetical shoot and creating pitch decks. Another contributor, an anonymous documentary director, trained an AI to transcribe muddled video audio and characterise speakers by appearance and accent, raising concerns among freelancers about the implications. The trend coincides with AI's growing presence in the industry, with Netflix reporting AI use in 300 of its 1,000 titles in 2026 and directors such as Ron Howard beginning to adopt the technology.