Generative AI is ‘almost like colonialism’, says Manchester Animation Festival co-founder - Prolific North
Generative AI uses artists' work without paying them fairly and could damage the special skills that make animation what it is, according to Dr Steve Henderson, co-founder and festival director of Manchester Animation Festival.
In an interview with Stephen Chapman, founder of 39 Pictures and a journalist at Prolific North, Henderson compared generative AI to "colonialism". He said AI companies are making money from the work and skills of artists who have spent many years learning how to create animation.
Henderson told Chapman that artists can spend decades improving their skills, only for an AI system to take their work without caring about them. He said it is terrible that the companies making money are not the artists whose work is being used. He believes this is deeply unfair.
He said generative AI is "almost like colonialism" because it cannot create these things on its own and does not have the resources it needs. Instead, he argued, it takes other people's culture, skills and creative work without paying for them, then uses that work to make money. He said this treatment of creative workers is awful.
As creative industries try to deal with the fast growth of AI, Henderson also questioned whether work made by generative AI should even be called animation.
He explained that animation means creating movement by making images one frame at a time. Generative AI, he said, works more like a computer calculation.
Henderson said he personally does not see generative AI as animation. He added that the Manchester Animation Festival team has many big discussions about this question.
The interview covered many topics as Manchester Animation Festival gets ready to return to Manchester for its 12th year, from 8 to 12 November. The festival will again offer a busy programme of film screenings, workshops, classes taught by experts and discussions about the animation industry.
Watch the full interview with Dr Steve Henderson here:
Henderson explained that the festival started as a three-day event. Since then, it has grown into one of the animation industry's major yearly events, and it keeps getting "bigger and bigger".
Manchester Animation Festival is the only animation festival in the UK where films can qualify for both the Oscars and the BAFTAs. This year's festival has several special events. One is the first-ever public showing of Mog's Bad Thing, which will be shown on Channel 4 at Christmas. The festival will hold a special screening for families at HOME, along with a session where the team from Lupus Films will explain how the film was made.
The festival will also celebrate 100 years since The Adventures of Prince Achmed was made. It is described as the earliest full-length animated film that still exists today. Yorkshire-based PitStop Productions will also create and present this year's ident, a short animation used to give the festival its own visual identity.
Henderson said the festival always tries to work with either a local company or a company that has been involved with Manchester Animation Festival before when choosing who will make the ident.
Henderson also wants people to understand how much money and work the animation industry brings to the economy, especially in Greater Manchester. For him, the festival is not just about celebrating animated films.
During the interview, he talked about the results of a survey of the region's animation industry, published earlier this year and created with help from organisations including the BBC. The survey helped show more clearly how big the industry is and how much it is worth.
The research found that the animation industry and related businesses in the region were worth £120.3 million. It also counted 1,665 people working in animation and related industries, including freelancers, during the period from 2022 to 2024.
Henderson said Manchester is a particularly exciting place right now because new funding is becoming available through the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA). This includes money to support productions and intellectual property, or IP, such as creative ideas and characters that people or companies own.
He explained that the research gives the animation industry a way to show leaders and people making important decisions how valuable it is. This could help make sure animation is included when decisions about funding and support are discussed.
Henderson said animation is already an important part of Manchester's creative industries and needs to be included in these plans.
Manchester Animation Festival takes place from 8 to 12 November 2026.