The sound of mouse clicks is heard repeatedly in a quiet cafe corner, where there is only the bright light of a monitor and the sound from a laptop. At the corner of the table, a glass of iced coffee has been melting for the past hour. Galang is still sitting in his chair, staring at a video timeline that is not yet finished. He works almost ten hours every day as a video editor. His daily routine is almost the same: receiving footage from clients, arranging the storyline, cutting audio, and making sure the rhythm of the video feels alive. Lately, something has changed the way he works.
The presence of Artificial Intelligence in editing software is quite helpful to him in doing his job. Processes that used to take days can be completed more easily and quickly with the help of AI. Now, he can create automatic subtitles, arrange rough cuts, and even improve audio quality with just a few clicks.
“The presence of AI is quite helpful in the editing field,” said Galang. “Now, there is a lot of software that has AI features and can shorten the time in doing the editing process.”
After that, Galang falls silent for a moment. The convenience he experiences is not entirely an advantage for him.
“But because of AI too, now everyone can achieve all of that instantly. People can easily become video editors.”
A few meters from where Galang is working, Olivia opens her laptop and chooses to sit near the window. Sunlight shines on Olivia’s face, who is focused on designing the project she is working on.
As a freelance Graphic Designer, Olivia is used to spending hours developing visual concepts. She not only creates designs, but also prepares briefs, reads client needs, and translates ideas into communicative visuals.
The entry of AI into the creative industry is also felt by Olivia. According to her, in the design field, AI can help with visual concepts and create general designs quickly.
“But we cannot use AI for everything.”
The phenomenon of the emergence of Artificial Intelligence in the creative world is a surprise for its workers. In the midst of rapid technological development, Artificial Intelligence is currently able to produce almost all forms of work, ranging from text, images, sound, to video.
On one hand, technology like this opens up opportunities for the creative industry to maximize and develop the products offered with the help of fast AI. On the other hand, this phenomenon raises a fundamental question: Is AI a collaborator or actually a competitor?
To understand this change, a number of researchers have begun to study the impact of AI on the creative working world. One of them is Anggi Ariska Putri; through her research titled “The Role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Technology as a Golden Bridge in Accelerating Creative Economic Industries in the Era of Society 5.0”, Anggi sees that the changes currently happening will not completely eliminate jobs, but rather cause a shift in roles.
Anggi explains that, according to her, the skills currently possessed by various creative workers can be the key to processing ideas and directing AI. “Those who can adapt will be needed more,” she said.
There are two possibilities that can be created by the development of AI. For workers in the creative industry who are willing to learn, this technology can increase productivity and open up new opportunities. However, for those who refuse to adapt to the developments, the risk of being left behind becomes greater.
Another concern is voiced by representatives from the Media and Creative Industry Workers Union for Democracy (SINDIKASI). Through discussion, SINDIKASI notes that the presence of AI can indeed be a tool to help someone in producing a work, especially in brainstorming and exploring ideas. However, they remind us that there is a potential for exploitation behind the use of this technology.
The pressure for efficiency pushed by companies often leads to the reduction of the human workforce. Based on a study by the International Labour Organization (ILO), there are different levels of exposure to AI in various types of jobs. Digital-based jobs, including media, design, audio, and visual, are the group most vulnerable to being affected.
The reality on the ground is not as simple as the discourse about technology, especially in the form of data or graphs. It lives in the routines of creative workers. Among the screens that stay on, the deadlines that never stop, and the presence of machines that now take up space in the creative process.
The efficiency in the creative field caused by AI reminds Olivia of the company where she worked before becoming a freelancer. She once experienced losing her coworkers because the company where she used to work believed those tasks could be replaced by AI. After that, Olivia’s days involved not only designing, but also preparing briefs, looking for references, and processing visual outputs from AI to fit the client’s needs.
“In my opinion, AI creates quite a struggle,” she said.
She was required to complete designs faster and in larger quantities. Since then, her workload has increased by combining human work with the results of machines that have no feelings.
Creative work cannot be entirely handed over to machines. “AI tends to produce something general. In fact, design requires feeling; there needs to be a different approach in every project.”
But for Galang, Artificial Intelligence is a double-edged sword. There is the good side that can speed up work. There is also the other side that can erode the boundary of expertise that used to distinguish a professional from anyone who can now “become” a professional with just a few clicks in AI software.
“Human creativity still keeps going; AI only acts as a tool.”
On the other hand, Dwi Aryo, a freelance copywriter, explains that the Artificial Intelligence phenomenon is not just a tool, but about brainstorming. His work as a writer often encounters a moment when ideas do not come. It is when a blank page feels heavier than usual. In the writing world, a block is not an unfamiliar thing. That is where the role of AI can help.
“AI can be a kind of creative assistant,” he said. “A partner, even a coworker if we use it wisely.”
For him, AI remains something that works without feeling. He never really equates machines with humans. Which has no doubts. Has no experience. Has no anxiety.
With developments constantly moving in all fields, creative workers seem to stand on a thin line that is not always visible. There is a demand to move faster, be more efficient, and be more productive. Moreover, there is also a desire to maintain something that cannot be measured by speed, which is the essence.
Artificial Intelligence becomes an assistant that helps, speeds things up, and even opens up new possibilities.
It is still a machine.
It does not feel.
It is not anxious.
Now, the question is no longer whether AI will replace humans. But rather, how humans remain present in their work.
As a controller.
As a partner.
Or slowly, as a shadow.
Between collaboration and competence, the future of the creative industry might not be determined by the technology itself.
But rather by the extent to which humans still maintain the one thing that cannot be programmed. Namely, feeling.
