A few years ago, Donald Trump shared a press release announcing a new Trump Hotel venture in India. The release was riddled with spelling errors—so carelessly done that it made you wonder if it was an intentional stunt for attention. This happened around 2012, a few years before Trump ran for president. Now, while India is not an English-speaking country, the sheer number of mistakes was too blatant to overlook.

Today, such errors wouldn’t stand a chance. With AI tools like ChatGPT, grammar and spelling errors can be corrected in seconds. In fact, AI can even write the entire press release with just a few points of information in minutes.

Tools like ChatGPT have become standard, even for editing books.

Books and Films

So, how does all this relate to books and films, as the headline suggests?

Books have always been turned into films, whether movies, TV series or real life documentaries. It’s a natural progression in the storytelling world.

I work in publishing today, but 15 years ago, I was in the TV and film industry. Back then, I was a show accountant and sometimes a product coordinator at Meerkat Media. We worked on documentaries and TV shows for both SABC and DSTV. In hindsight, it’s an interesting link between my past and present.

African Books Adapted into Film

Here are a few examples of African books that have been adapted into films:

• Happiness Is a Four-Letter Word (2010), by South African author Nozizwe Cynthia Jele, was adapted into a movie in 2016.
• The Mauritanian (2021), based on Mohamedou Ould Slahi’s memoir Guantánamo Diary (2015), tells the story of his illegal imprisonment at Guantanamo Bay.
• Beasts of No Nation (2005), by Nigerian-American Uzodinma Iweala, was adapted into a Netflix film in 2015.
• The 2005 Academy Award-winning film Tsotsi is based on a 1980 novel by Athol Fugard.
• In 2024, Angela Makholwa’s novel Red Ink was adapted into a Showmax series.

AI Will Help Africans Produce Films Cheaper, Quicker, and Faster

Technology, specifically AI, is revolutionizing the way films are made, making the process cheaper, quicker, and faster across all stages:

• Pre-production
• Production
• Post-production

This is precisely what the subtitle of my book 90 Days to Create & Launch emphasizes: “It is the Easiest, Cheapest, and Quickest Time in History to be an Entrepreneur and Innovator.” AI is – and will – make filmmaking more accessible and affordable.

This will be especially great for African creators, for whom high costs have long been a barrier.Platforms like YouTube and TikTok have democratized content creation, allowing people to create and share short stories. It’s amazing how accessible storytelling has become.

Entrepreneur and investor Peter H. Diamandis, founder of X Prize, explains this evolution beautifully through his framework called the Six Ds of Exponentials.

Six Ds of Exponentials

1. Digitization: Converting processes into digital formats for scalability.
2. Deception: Early growth seems slow, leading to underestimation—until the technology begins to show its true potential.
3. Disruption: The technology eventually overtakes traditional methods.
4. Demonetization: Costs drop, making previously expensive services nearly free.
5. Dematerialization: Physical products are replaced by digital versions.
6. Democratization: The technology becomes accessible to everyone.

Here’s how AI is making filmmaking cheaper, easier, and faster—positioning Africa to benefit more than anywhere else in the future:

• Scriptwriting: AI tools like ChatGPT are used to help  edit and structure scripts in minutes.
• Deepfake Technology: In Furious 7, AI was used to digitally recreate Paul Walker posthumously through CGI and deepfake technology.
• Voice Mimicking: Software like Respeecher can replicate voices, allowing older actors to “speak” in new scenes.
• Face Replacement: In Central Intelligence, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s face was superimposed onto Sione Kelepi’s body for flashback scenes of the character’s youth.
• Kendrick Lamar’s Music Video: In The Heart Part 5 (2022), AI technology from the startup Deep Voodoo was used to morph Lamar’s face with icons like Kobe Bryant and O.J. Simpson.
• Simulon: This app allows filmmakers to integrate real-world locations with AI-generated characters and objects. You can shoot a scene on your phone and later add virtual robots or monsters.
• Text-to-Video: AI tools like Sora can turn text into video. Music videos and short stories have already been produced using this technology.
• Wonder Dynamics: Co-founded by X-Men star Tye Sheridan, this app replaces real actors with CGI characters, making advanced visual effects more accessible.
• Cinelytic: This startup uses AI to analyze past data to predict the success of scripts and actor choices, helping studios make smarter decisions quicker.
• AI Location Scouting: Tools like Refsee use AI to scout filming locations without the need for physical visits.
• Trailer Editing: AI apps can even select the best scenes for movie trailers, saving time and effort.

Cheaper, Quicker, and Easier

All these AI tools are making filmmaking tasks—once expensive and time-consuming—much more affordable, faster, and easier. The skills required have been democratized. Expensive equipment that was once necessary has been phased out (dematerialized). Most AI apps are inexpensive, ranging from free versions to subscriptions costing between $10 and $100 per month (demonetization).

This wave of digitization makes things quicker, easier, and far more affordable. It’s a disruption to traditional filmmaking methods, and AI has clearly passed the deception phase. Africa stands to benefit significantly from this revolution. We couldn’t afford it using traditional methods.

Looking Ahead

At Bula Buka Publishers, we are exploring how an AI publishing can look.