The Future of Filmmaking is Promptmaking

Last week, Netflix made a quiet announcement that should have sent shockwaves through Hollywood. For the first time, they used generative AI to create final footage that appeared on screen—a building collapse scene in the Argentine series "El Eternauta." The kicker? It was completed 10 times faster than traditional VFX and cost significantly less.

This isn't just another tech experiment. This is the beginning of a fundamental shift in how stories get made. We're moving from an era of filmmaking to an era of promptmaking.

What Is Promptmaking?

Imagine directing a film where your primary tool isn't a camera, but carefully crafted text descriptions. Where instead of "Camera left, action!" you're writing "Wide shot: rain-soaked street at night, neon reflections on asphalt, a lone figure in a red coat walks toward the camera, film noir lighting, shot on 35mm."

That's promptmaking,the art and craft of using natural language to generate cinematic content. It's not about replacing traditional filmmaking entirely, but about expanding what's possible for storytellers at every level.

We're already seeing this revolution play out in real-time on social media. AI-generated ads are taking over Twitter. After a viral IKEA spot, people are now competing to create brand-level commercials using #Veo3—with $0 budget and nothing but a well-crafted prompt. These aren't amateur experiments anymore; they're polished, professional-looking advertisements that rival traditional agency work.

But here's what separates amateur prompts from professional ones—the level of precision and craft involved. A professional promptmaker doesn't just write "MacBook commercial." They create something like this:

prompt_name: "MacBook Pro Creative Fusion"
base_style: "cinematic, photorealistic, 4K, sleek, clean, minimalist"
aspect_ratio: "16:9"
room_description: "A dimly lit, minimalist desk setup. The surface is a clean, dark wood or matte black finish. The background is out of focus."
camera_setup: "A single, fixed, head-on shot of the desk. The camera does not move."

timeline:
sequence: 1 (00:00-00:01)
action: "The closed MacBook Pro sits silently on the dark desk."
audio: "A low, faint electronic hum. Almost imperceptible."

sequence: 2 (00:01-00:02)
action: "The lid opens smoothly on its own. Screen illuminates with pure white light."
audio: "The iconic Mac startup 'chime', clean and with slight reverb."

sequence: 3 (00:02-00:06)
action: "Hyper-lapse: Digital assets—video clips, audio waveforms, color grading wheels—fly from frame edges and elegantly arrange themselves onto the screen, building a complex project timeline at incredible speed."
audio: "Sophisticated montage of UI sounds: clicks, swishes, keyboard taps, processor whir."

sequence: 4 (00:06-00:08)
action: "Final element snaps into place. Cursor appears, makes one final click. Project finished. All motion stops."
audio: "UI sounds cease. Single, satisfying 'click'. Moment of silence."

This isn't just description—it's direction. It's cinematography. It's sound design. It's a complete creative brief that could theoretically generate a broadcast-quality commercial.

The Writing Is Already on the Wall

Netflix isn't just experimenting with AI-generated footage. They're partnering with Runway AI, one of the leading video generation platforms, and integrating AI throughout their entire pipeline. They've redesigned their entire user interface around AI-powered discovery, letting viewers search for content using conversational language like "something scary, but not too scary, and maybe a little bit funny, but not haha funny."

But here's what's really telling: Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said they "remain convinced that AI represents an incredible opportunity to help creators make films and series better, not just cheaper." Better, not just cheaper. That's the key distinction.

The Democratization Revolution

For decades, filmmaking has been gatekept by access to expensive equipment, large crews, and distribution networks. A single Hollywood production can require hundreds of people and millions of dollars. Promptmaking changes the math entirely.

With sufficiently advanced AI tools, a single creator with a compelling vision and strong prompt engineering skills could generate:

• Photorealistic environments that would cost hundreds of thousands to build
• Complex action sequences without stunt coordinators or safety concerns
• Period pieces without historical set construction
• Fantasy worlds limited only by imagination, not budget

This doesn't just level the playing field—it creates an entirely new playing field.

The New Skillset

Traditional filmmaking requires mastery of cameras, lighting, sound, editing, and countless other technical disciplines. Promptmaking requires mastery of language, storytelling, and what we might call "AI direction"—the ability to communicate creative vision to artificial intelligence systems.

The most successful promptmakers will likely be those who understand both the technical capabilities of AI systems and the emotional core of storytelling. They'll need to be part poet, part technician, part psychologist.

What This Means for Working Filmmakers

For Independent Filmmakers: The barriers to entry are about to get dramatically lower. Complex visual effects that were once the exclusive domain of major studios will become accessible to anyone with a laptop and imagination.

For VFX Artists: The role is evolving rapidly. Instead of manually creating every pixel, VFX artists may become more like art directors, guiding AI systems toward desired outcomes and ensuring quality control.

For Directors: The director's chair is about to get more powerful. Being able to rapidly prototype scenes, test different visual approaches, and iterate on ideas without massive production overhead will accelerate the creative process.

For Producers: Budget considerations are shifting. Less money on crew and equipment might mean more money for marketing, distribution, or simply higher profit margins.

The Hybrid Future

The future probably isn't entirely prompt-based. The most compelling content will likely blend traditional techniques with AI generation. Live actors bringing nuanced performances to AI-generated environments. Real locations enhanced with impossible weather or lighting. Traditional cinematography seamlessly integrated with AI-generated establishing shots.

Think of it like the transition from practical effects to CGI in the 1990s. The best films didn't abandon practical effects entirely—they used them where they worked best and supplemented with digital tools where they added value.

Challenges and Concerns

Let's be honest about the obstacles. Current AI video generation still struggles with consistency, especially for longer sequences. Character continuity remains challenging. And there are legitimate concerns about job displacement and the value of human craftsmanship.

But these feel like temporary technical hurdles rather than fundamental limitations. The pace of improvement in AI video generation has been exponential, and the industry is already adapting.

Getting Started Today

If you're a filmmaker who wants to prepare for this future, start experimenting now:

1. Learn prompt engineering: Start with image generation tools like Midjourney or VEO3 to understand how to communicate visual concepts through text.
2. Experiment with video AI: Try tools like Runway, Pika, or Stable Video Diffusion to get a feel for current capabilities and limitations.
3. Study AI-generated content: Analyze what works and what doesn't in AI-generated videos. Develop an eye for the telltale signs and learn to work with the medium's strengths.
4. Think in sequences: Practice describing not just single shots, but how shots connect and flow together.

The Bottom Line

The future of filmmaking is promptmaking,not because it will replace every aspect of traditional production, but because it will become an essential tool in every storyteller's toolkit. Just as digital cameras didn't kill cinematography but transformed it, AI generation won't kill filmmaking but will fundamentally expand what's possible.

The filmmakers who thrive in this new landscape will be those who embrace these tools early, understand their capabilities and limitations, and use them to tell stories that weren't possible before.

The revolution isn't coming. It's here. Netflix just proved it.