Is AI a Tool? w/Sarah May Bates and Susan Song  - Just Shoot It 516
26 February 2026

Is AI a Tool? w/Sarah May Bates and Susan Song - Just Shoot It 516

Just Shoot It: A Podcast about Filmmaking, Screenwriting and Directing

About

Sarah May Bates https://www.sarahmaybates.com/ is an AI director, and she’s been getting lots of work! And Matt and Oren dive deep into how she makes that happen. She’s joined by actor Susan Song.


Sarah has a clear line for AI usage. And it comes down to what are you in this for? Do you love the organic aspect of filmmaking and discovery, where what you plan isn’t always what you get? Like, in a good way.


Because if you’re not, you might prefer the robotic precision of AI.


But be careful of being tricked into believing that’s what brands want, especially the top brands you want to work for.


At the end of the day, Sarah believes human oversight is at the core of what creatives do. Like, why would you want to have AI write your script, or even your email? That’s what you do, and that’s what makes you who you are!


Here’s the golden rule: if the medium is leading, then you are failing.


What does that mean? Don’t fall into the trap of creating AI for the sake of filling the request. Instead, Sarah recommends letting the creative work find what it wants to be!


This is the episode you want to hear as an actor, filmmaker, or anyone in the industry looking for some sense of purpose, foundation, and compass for what’s happening in AI!

Connect with Sarah at https://www.yaywithme.com


Connect with Susan on IG @sujjang012


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Help Matts' film: https://wefunder.com/badfeeling

Help our Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/JustShootItPod


Matt's Endorsement: Send Help https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8036976/

Nick Lutsko's song for the Manscaped Super Bowl Commercial https://www.local3news.com/local-news/update-chattanooga-artist-nick-lutsko-composes-song-for-national-super-bowl-commercial/article_dd5d9cd0-9c5a-4565-a1af-1dfe3d1ffdda.html


Sarah's Endorsement: The UPA Cartoon "Rooty Toot Toot" https://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/the-70th-anniversary-of-rooty-toot-toot/ 


The documentary on the animation company UPA https://www.cartoonbrew.com/documentary-2/animation-mavericks-the-forgotten-story-of-upa-documentary-258284.html 


The book "Bird by Bird", by Anne Lamott https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/97395/bird-by-bird-by-anne-lamott/


Susan's Endorsement: See the Backstreet Boys at the Sphere, in Las Vegas


Oren's Endorsement: @stuffaboutadvertising on Instagram


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