The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming documentary filmmaking, reshaping nearly every stage of production, from research and archival discovery to transcription, editing, visual restoration, and audience engagement. While AI-powered tools significantly improve efficiency, reduce production costs, and expand creative possibilities, they also raise fundamental questions about authorship, authenticity, ethics, and the irreplaceable role of human judgment. Documentary storytelling has traditionally relied on empathy, lived experience, editorial intuition, and ethical decision-making to construct truthful and emotionally resonant narratives. These qualities are difficult to replicate through algorithmic systems alone.
This article examines the evolving relationship between human creativity and artificial intelligence in documentary storytelling through a qualitative literature review informed by the PRISMA 2020 reporting framework. Rather than framing AI as a replacement for filmmakers, it argues that AI functions most effectively as a collaborative creative assistant that augments human capabilities while leaving critical editorial decisions in human hands. The discussion explores AI’s applications across documentary workflows, including pre-production research, automated transcription, metadata generation, archival organization, rough-cut assembly, translation, and visual enhancement, alongside its limitations in interpreting emotional nuance, cultural context, moral complexity, and narrative intention.
The article further addresses the ethical implications of AI-assisted documentary production, including concerns surrounding misinformation, deepfakes, algorithmic bias, transparency, copyright, and audience trust, grounded in a documented case study of AI voice reconstruction in the documentary Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain. Drawing on contemporary developments in generative AI and documentary practice, it argues that the future of documentary filmmaking lies not in competition between humans and machines but in a collaborative model where AI enhances efficiency while human storytellers preserve authenticity, accountability, and creative vision. Ultimately, the enduring value of documentary cinema will continue to depend on the uniquely human capacity to understand lived experience, exercise ethical judgment, and tell stories that foster empathy and social understanding.