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UAE: AI can help produce an entire show from home amid age of 'pocket studios', say creators
However, while tech 'might accelerate production and lower costs, it could also devalue traditional animation workflows,' said one expert
- PUBLISHED: Fri 2 May 2025, 7:27 PM
AI or artificial intelligence has the potential to transform the future of children’s content and empower storytellers from underrepresented regions, said global creators who gathered at the four-day 3rd annual Sharjah Animation Conference (SAC 2025) that started on Thursday.
Creators and animators from Africa to France discussed how AI could enhance the storytelling ecosystem by using it “ethically, thoughtfully, and locally.”
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“Right now, Western countries dominate the animation landscape,” said Olivier Lelardoux, CEO at Blue Spirit Studio in France. He added: “AI could rebalance this by giving creators in Africa, the Arab world, and Asia the tools to tell their stories to a global audience without relying on traditional studio infrastructure.”
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Raymond Malinga, whose Ugandan studio produced the short film ‘A Kalabanda Ate My Homework’, took note of both the potential and the challenges of building AI tools locally.
“Training our own AI models is expensive and time-consuming, especially in landlocked countries like mine. But if we want authentic stories that don’t look like generic Western outputs, we must build our own systems.”
“We need to build and train our own models using licensed art and do this responsibly, especially when developing tools for children,” underscored Irmak Atabek, whose latest venture KidsAI is developing child-friendly AI literacy tools.
Atabek called for a shift in how the industry treats intellectual property. Her upcoming show ‘Zoe and Oli’, launching soon on YouTube, teaches children how AI works, by following the story of a girl who builds a solar-powered AI unicorn.
“Children are digital natives. They need to understand the systems they’re growing up with,” she added.
Shift to pocket-sized studios
The session, moderated by Mounia Aram, founder of the Mounia Aram Company, saw all panelists agreeing on the observation that AI could usher in a new generation of creators.
“We’re entering the age of so-called ‘pocket studios’,” said Lelardoux, explaining: “With the right tools, a single creator can produce entire shows from their bedroom. That’s a powerful shift.”
“(But) we need to focus on high-quality, premium content — on what’s difficult to replicate. That’s where lasting value lies,” he cautioned saying AI “might accelerate production and lower costs but it could also devalue traditional animation workflows.”
The panelists also acknowledged concerns around job displacement and creative dilution but the tone of the discussion remained optimistic.
Atabek said: “AI is not the end of creativity; it’s an evolution. The real threat is not technology, but failing to adapt responsibly.” She reiterated the future of kids’ content will be shaped not just by algorithms, but by the values, ethics and imagination of the people behind them.
Malinga, for his part, underscored the pressing need for inclusion. He said: “Africa is full of young people hungry for content that reflects their lives. If AI can help us meet that demand, let’s make it accessible and affordable.”
