Dave Clark isn’t just making AI-assisted films—he’s waging war on the limits of machine-made storytelling. His latest project, Battalion, throws AI into the trenches, testing how well artificial intelligence can simulate the human condition in one of the most emotionally charged genres: war cinema.
Clark isn’t here to play it safe. Battalion is an all-in experiment, a stress test for AI filmmaking, and a gut check for where this tech actually stands. Does it deliver? Yes. Does it stumble? Also yes. But more importantly, it poses a bigger question: Is Dave Clark the one who will lead AI filmmaking to its first Oscar?
AI-Driven Trajectory
Dave Clark is not waiting for Hollywood to catch up—he’s building the future now. With his latest venture, Promise, Clark is launching an AI-powered film studio, backed by some serious industry players. This isn’t just about making indie AI movies anymore; it’s about industrializing AI filmmaking. (Read more on Clark’s AI film studio here).
Fresh off Sundance, where AI-driven films sparked heated debates, Clark has doubled down on machine-made cinema, teasing new projects that push realism even further. (Check out his insights from Sundance).
The real question? If an AI-generated film wins an Oscar, will it be one of Clark’s? We explored the inevitability of AI bagging Hollywood’s biggest prize in a previous article Will the Next Spielberg Be an Algorithm. If that happens, Clark is on the shortlist of people who could make it happen first.

The Visuals: When AI Flexes Hard
Clark’s use of Unreal Engine delivers some jaw-dropping battle sequences. The environments? Photorealistic. The lighting? Cinematic. For an AI-powered indie production, Battalion looks leagues ahead of most low-budget war films.
What Works: AI-driven visuals absolutely shine in world-building. The battlefields are rich with detail, weather effects add atmosphere, and AI-enhanced cinematography feels intentional, not random. Where It Falters: AI-generated characters still have that robotic stiffness. Facial expressions lack subtlety, and emotional moments don’t always land because the characters sometimes move like NPCs in a video game.
The technology is close—but not quite there yet.
The Story: Where AI Still Needs a Screenwriter
Set in World War II, Battalion follows a squad of soldiers holding the line against overwhelming odds. It’s a classic war story, packed with heroism, sacrifice, and gut-punch emotion. At its core, the film asks: How much of war is about strategy, and how much is about sheer human will?
But here’s the catch—Clark leaned on ChatGPT to help write the script, and it shows.
What Works: The story hits all the right beats—big action moments, emotional sacrifices, a clear arc. Where It Falls Flat: Narrative. Clark can design. Clark has an eye for cinematic composition. Clark knows what looks good.But can he write? That’s the missing link. The script is functional but hollow, with AI-generated dialogue that lacks the human unpredictability and depth needed to make characters feel real. Writing dialogue isn’t just about plugging in prompts—it’s about nuance, subtext, rhythm. Battalion has the framework of a great war story, but the words don’t cut deep enough.
The problem facing AI-driven shorts—and the reason many of them struggle to make the leap to feature films—is substance over spectacle. Visuals can sell a film, but without a gripping, character-driven narrative, it won’t hold. Clark is on the frontlines of AI filmmaking, but if he wants to be the one who delivers the first AI Oscar winner (no clue if he does), he needs to figure out how to inject soul into the machine.
The Tech Behind Battalion
Clark’s technical approach is a masterclass in leveraging AI for indie filmmaking.
With tools like:
Unreal Engine – Handles real-time rendering and environments.
Runway ML – Used for AI-powered animation and scene composition.
ChatGPT – Assisted with dialogue and narrative structure.
These tools drastically cut production costs, proving that AI can democratize filmmaking. But they also reveal where human involvement is still 100% necessary.
What’s Still Missing?
Emotional Depth
AI can generate faces, but can it generate feeling? Not yet. The expressions in Battalion often feel static, missing the micro-expressions that sell a performance.
Fluidity in Animations
Some action scenes feel rigid, especially when characters move under high-intensity conditions. This is where motion capture tech still outshines AI.
Narrative Grit
The greatest war films hit deep because of their dialogue, their characters, their human chaos. Battalion is a visually stunning film with placeholder dialogue. If AI can’t write great scripts yet, AI directors need to bring in real screenwriters to bridge the gap.
The Companies Fixing These Gaps
Several companies are at the forefront of addressing the limitations seen in Battalion. Here are a few making significant strides:
Epic Games (Unreal Engine): Continues to push the envelope in photorealistic rendering and real-time animation. Their advancements in motion capture could resolve issues with character fluidity.
Runway ML: A leader in generative AI tools, Runway ML is refining its software to enhance video editing and compositing, aiming for greater realism and efficiency.
OpenAI: With ongoing improvements to ChatGPT, OpenAI is working to make AI-generated dialogue more contextually aware and emotionally nuanced.
Reallusion: Specializing in facial animation and motion capture, Reallusion’s tools could significantly enhance the emotional expressiveness of AI-generated characters.
Final Verdict: The Human Touch Still Wins
Battalion is a glimpse into the future, proving that AI can amplify human creativity—but it can’t replace it. Not yet. Clark’s work is groundbreaking, but it also exposes the limitations AI filmmakers still face.
The Big Takeaway: AI can generate the spectacle, but humans bring the soul.
If an AI film wins an Oscar in our lifetime, Dave Clark is one of the directors to watch. Battalion proves he’s already on that trajectory—but if he wants to be the one (again, absolutely no clue), he needs to master narrative as well as he masters aesthetics.
Follow Dave Clark on YouTube & Instagram to stay up-to-date on his next AI experiment.
About the Author:
Brock Cravy is a writer, filmmaker, and digital strategist exploring the intersection of AI, cinema, and storytelling. As the Executive Producer of NeuroScope Films, he curates innovative projects that push the boundaries of technology and narrative. Follow him for more deep dives into the future of entertainment.
Comentários