The guild, which represents folks like art directors, storyboard artists, production designers, and other creative pros in film and TV, says Scorsese’s support for FLUX undercuts the human collaboration at the core of filmmaking. In a Black Forest Labs video, Scorsese talks about storyboarding and visualizing ideas with FLUX. He says filmmakers need to stay “open to how [cinema] can evolve.” That didn’t sit well with the guild. They fired back with a statement called “Mr. Scorsese, The Business is not in flux,” accusing him of turning his back on the artists who helped make his films memorable.
Their statement argues that Scorsese’s endorsement sidesteps the input of union artists, like art directors, graphic and scenic artists, illustrators, and set designers. They also point out that generative AI like FLUX only works because it’s been trained on a massive amount of copyrighted art—most of it scraped from the internet without anyone’s permission, credit, or payment. “Artists and designers from Art Directors Guild Local 800 bring unmatched value to every film or TV project,” their statement says. “Thinking AI can mimic or outshine their work—especially when it’s built on art likely taken from them and others around the globe—betrays the collaborative heart of cinema.”
Black Forest Labs and Scorsese claim that FLUX isn’t about replacing creative professionals, but about helping with early visual development: things like storyboarding, previsualization, and coming up with ideas faster. In his promo, Scorsese calls cinema a “young medium,” and says filmmakers should keep exploring new tech to push storytelling forward. Black Forest Labs says FLUX lets creators turn ideas into visuals quickly, but they haven’t said where their training data comes from or how licensing works.
The Art Directors Guild, IATSE Local 800 #adg800 has issued a statement on Martin Scorsese’s recent promotion of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI):
“Mr. Scorsese, The Business is not in flux.
Oscar winning director Martin Scorsese is turning his back on the human artists… pic.twitter.com/7vyqOVGWOZ
— Art Directors Guild (@ADG800) June 9, 2026
This fight is just one example of a bigger debate in Hollywood as studios and tech companies push generative AI, and artists try to set some ground rules. Unions and artists worry about how AI learns, copyright violations, and losing jobs as software gets more involved. Some guilds are already pushing for artist opt-outs, transparency around training data, and better contracts to protect members. Critics warn that even if AI just helps draft storyboards, it still chips away at jobs that rely on hands-on collaboration and creative judgment. Fans of these tools insist that, used right, they can speed up the boring parts and give artists more freedom in the early, messy phases of a project.
For now, Local 800 hasn’t threatened strikes or similar action, but they’ve made it clear this is part of a broader fight to protect artists’ rights and keep creative work human. As studios keep trying out AI-driven tools, expect the tension between creative workers and tech firms to keep growing. Scorsese’s reps and Black Forest Labs didn’t comment before publication.
