AI and creative direction: how to guide production

Write down the audience, message and intended placement. Then give generation a specific task: trying materials, testing a composition or previewing a sequence. A request such as “make it premium” leaves the decisions the team needs to discuss unresolved.

Note what you need from each image: its light, pace or treatment of a material. This lets you compare different proposals without asking for a copy of an existing result.

Judge images against the brief. For example, in a product advert the packaging must keep its shape and legible lettering during movement and in vertical crops. Test these shots before approving the scene.

Allow time for drawing, CGI, editing or compositing. Separate exploration, production and revisions in the estimate so the client knows what each approval covers.

Archive inputs, approved versions and edits. Use the Content Credentials described in the C2PA specification to keep provenance information in formats that support them.

Assign a contact to check which information about AI use needs to accompany publication. The European Commission’s Article 50 guidance sets out the cases and responsibilities to review.

Before final approval, check the message, product details and consistency across versions. Deliver the files with the agreed usage instructions and a record of materials used. The client should understand what they are publishing.