Neuro and families: AI and traditional values discussed in St. Petersburg
Cooperation with China, the dangers of artificial intelligence and the promotion of family values in Russia and abroad were discussed at the United Cultures Forum, which started on September 11 in St. Petersburg. In addition, Russian institutions have signed memoranda and agreements with organizations from China, Belarus, South Korea and Kazakhstan. And in between business events, guests could watch exhibitions dedicated to the 80th anniversary of Victory and appreciate the dance of a virtual artist named Mishka Top. Izvestia gathered the most interesting events of the first days of the forum.
At the cutting edge of technology
Traditionally, the main venue of the United Cultures Forum is the Hermitage Headquarters. Although various sessions are held in other places of St. Petersburg (and even beyond its borders - in Gatchina and Tsarskoye Selo), it is at Dvortsovaya that the most important guests gather. However, even inside one building, the saturation of events is such that you have to choose.
Here are just some of the topics of the first of the two days of the forum: "Educational organizations in shaping the global cultural space", "Culture and the construction of civilization. On cultural goal-setting", "Dialogue of theaters in Russia, Asia, Africa, South America, and the Arab World: investing in cultural exchange". Anyway, for all the external diversity, there were clearly two key themes that arose in a variety of conversations. The first is artificial intelligence. The second is cooperation, the creation of a joint cultural product with other countries.
The use of neural networks was discussed at the very first panel discussion "New technologies in culture and art — benefit or harm, benefits or risk." Mikhail Shvydkoi, the special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for cultural Cooperation, noted that most of the coursework is now being written using AI, and told about a case from his own practice when a student did a good thesis, but non-existent books in the literature list gave out the hand of a neural network. "But AI learns fast," Shvydkoi cautioned. And director Konstantin Bogomolov complained that the fascination with technology slows down the development of the language of cinema: according to him, it is more interesting for cameramen and editors to play with AI than to experiment in pure art.
The skeptics' concerns were balanced by Svetlana Balanova, CEO of the National Media Group, who told what opportunities AI offers filmmakers today, and demonstrated a REN TV video showing examples of using neural networks in TV channel projects, including documentary projects where AI helps improve the quality of archived videos, and game projects where scenery, extras, and even some characters in The frames are created using the latest technology.
After the discussion, Svetlana Balanova recalled the reaction of her foreign colleagues to the demonstration.
— The South Korean AI specialist kept giving the thumbs up and making round eyes, admiring the REN TV video (as one of the examples of what NMG is doing in this field). In the media industry, we are truly at the cutting edge of technology. And we use neural networks on a full scale. And from this point of view, of course, the state of the Russian media industry is very developed today," the NMG CEO emphasized in a comment to Izvestia.
Humanitarian marketing
There was a lot of talk about neural networks in the sessions devoted directly to cinema. In general, experts agreed that AI is no longer something unusual or specific, but an everyday tool of the industry that can replace many things, except, in fact, human talent, creativity, and the ability to create the right meanings. But how can these meanings be conveyed to a foreign audience? How can we enter large markets in the current geopolitical difficulties and constraints?
Speaking about this in the framework of the discussion "Common cultural space: is it possible today?", Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Pankin proposed the term "humanitarian marketing", referring to the promotion of films abroad not so much for commercial purposes, but specifically to fight for the minds and hearts of foreign viewers.
However, there are already examples where one and the other are happily combined in one project. This is the film "Red Silk", which was released in China last week and showed excellent box office results. The project was created in a co-production of the two countries. On the Russian side, NMG Kinoprokat, a part of the National Media Group, participated in its production.
— I must say that the Chinese market is really difficult for us. But on the first weekend, we still managed to raise several hundred thousand dollars. That is, for example, in recent history, these are, of course, record fees," Svetlana Balanova noted. The result of the success was a one-month extension of the rental.
Actor Milos Bikovic, who played one of the main roles, also spoke at the forum about the impressive reception of the tape in China. He admitted that he was extremely surprised to learn about his popularity among Chinese girls. It turned out that there is even a Bikovich fan club in China, and they know him not only from the acclaimed hit "Ice", but also from the old Serbian TV series, which no one specifically promoted to the Asian market.
The panelists agreed that investing in marketing for success abroad is still desirable, even if it doesn't pay off at first. And the state's help is needed here. Alexander Zharov, CEO of Gazprom-Media Holding, suggested creating an analog of Goskino for this purpose, in which professionals with the participation of the state will make decisions on which topics should be promoted abroad. "That's how Hollywood works, that's how China works. If we want to take a place in the global film distribution, there is no other way," Zharov is sure.
Family and anti-family values
Finally, in the late afternoon, there was a discussion about the values themselves — in fact, about what exactly the state wants to promote through culture both in the world and within itself. The importance of the event was highlighted by the participation of the head of the forum's organizing committee, Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation Tatyana Golikova. The focus was on the topic of family, which is directly related to demographic issues.
"Culture forms meanings, and meanings are our attitude to a particular problem. And if we don't treat the fundamental problem — the problem of the family — through culture, through media culture, then we won't be able to achieve what we really want," Tatiana Golikova said, urging the media not to demonstrate "anti—family values" in their media products.
Maria Zakharova, director of the Information and Press Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who took part in the discussion, suggested that media shows on family conflicts should be abandoned and called for the formation of a special culture of attitude towards motherhood and children, different from that imposed by the West.
— Culture is not something that is separate from a person. It nourishes us, and being passed down from generation to generation, it preserves true values. Therefore, everything related to family, childhood, and motherhood is an integral part of culture. Just as culture affects the family and the way a person goes into the future," Maria Zakharova shared with Izvestia, commenting on her participation in the Forum of United Cultures.
Hermitage — to Korea, Mishka Top — to the Hermitage
As in previous years, the forum has become not only a platform for discussions, but also a place for signing a number of official international documents. Thus, the Moscow Museum of Music became friends with the Hubei Provincial Museum (China), the Minister of Culture of the Astrakhan Region signed an agreement with a counterpart from Mogilev (Belarus), and the Hermitage signed a memorandum of cooperation with the Azret Sultan National Museum-Reserve (Kazakhstan) and the Art works company (South Korea).
The latter is especially significant. As part of this cooperation, the Hermitage will have two representative offices in this republic: the first center in Seoul./Seongnam will focus on educational activities and the popularization of museum heritage, while the second one, on Jeju Island, will focus on the development of digital technologies, including the creation of multimedia installations, the development of NFT projects and the production of various digital content.
However, high technology in the service of culture does not have to be taken extremely seriously. There should be room for a smile, apparently, the organizers of the forum decided and invited a virtual character named Mishka Top to perform a dance number. The digital artist performed his hit "Give me a Paw, give me a Paw!" together with the girl blogger Milana Shine. And the guests had an urgent topic of conversation at the evening reception in the Mikhailovsky Garden: whose duet is better — Shine with a Top this year or Nadezhda Kadysheva with a robot in the past.
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