Sora 2 and the Creative Crossroads We’re Standing At

My thoughts have been running wild since the release of Sora 2.

If you’ve been anywhere near the filmmaking or AI community lately, you’ll know what I mean - timelines flooded with these hyperrealistic clips coupled with captions screaming, “Hollywood is finished!” or “Filmmakers are obsolete!”

Yes, it’s exciting. But also so tiresome.

The Long Wait and the Letdown

When OpenAI first teased Sora 1, it felt like a revolution was coming. Those short, cinematic clips spread like wildfire across social media - beautifully lit scenes, camera movements that felt almost too real - and everyone from hobbyists to professionals started imagining what they could make once they got their hands on it.

And after all the hype, all the waiting, and all the “Hollywood is cooked” headlines… when Sora 1 finally released, for a filmmaker embracing AI, I was massively disappointed.

For one, the best results were hidden behind the $200-a-month “Pro” paywall, and if those of us using the cheaper “Plus” tier, the quality dropped fast. Your creations come stamped with a watermark, as if to remind you that what you made doesn’t really belong to you.

Now, I get why the watermark exists - to prevent deepfakes and misuse - but if I am paying even a basic subscription, I should be able to download and use a video without one.

Come the announcement of Sora 2, my social media feeds were again filled with posts from selected influencers sharing - what I would assume are - carefully curated clips showcasing this latest video generating tool.

Again, the technology wasn’t available to the average user at the time of announcement, and it makes me wonder, are we being set up for another disappointment?

Are the clips we are seeing using processors that will be unavailable to general users when a release does finally come? How many attempts were made using this model to see the results we were witness to? How many restrictions will be implemented? One thing is for certain; the Sora watermark is even more prominent with this tool.

The Death of Horror

Anyone who knows me knows that my favorite movie genre is horror. As of right now, horror fans are eating well; 2025 has seen the release of Sinners, Bring Her Back, and Weapons - three incredible movies that had movie theaters filling up. Horror movies are great to experience in the cinema, and Hollywood has been pushing them out so much recently because, I believe, it has been great for getting audiences back into theaters.

As a creator of horror content with my Podcast and YouTube channel Tales of High Strangeness, I often find AI models flag the content I try to create as “Against their policies.” Sometimes it forces me to abandon certain creations and move onto something else entirely.

I believe watching horror movies in the cinema is so enjoyable is that it enables a shared experience of fear. It’s ironic, really. The very tools that promise infinite creativity are terrified of exploring human fear - one of the most fundamental emotions we have.

How can we call this the future of storytelling if we can’t even tell stories about the things that scare us?

Content vs. Art

There’s a difference - a big one - between content and art. Content is what algorithms crave: fast, frequent, trend-friendly uploads.

Art is what humans crave: time, passion, and truth.

But platforms like YouTube and TikTok reward consistency over craftsmanship.

They don’t care if your latest upload changed someone’s life - only that it exists, on schedule.

So, in a twisted way, AI-generated video becomes the perfect companion for this attention economy. Why spend months perfecting one film when you can churn out three in a day with just a few prompts?

And yet, as someone who edits video for a living, I can tell you - that’s not what I want AI for.

I don’t need it to replace filmmaking; I want it to streamline those annoying, tedious parts - the sorting of footage, syncing audio, dynamic transitions, and titles.

Give me back my time, not my humanity. Why is there so much focus on creating the visuals that take away the rewarding aspects of filmmaking? Shot composition, lighting, and the significant results from directing actors.

The Human Element

As we navigate this unpredictable time, here’s something keeps me grounded: when I watch a film, I’m moved not just by the story but by the knowledge that humans made it.

People rehearsed those lines, built those sets, lit those shots, edited those sequences. There’s sweat and toil behind every frame.

So when I see AI videos being celebrated as “the future of film,” I can’t help but wonder — will we still care once we know no one made it?

If a story moves you but no human told it, can it really move you at all?

The Creative Paradox

Here’s where it gets complicated.

I use AI tools every day. I love them. They let me create things I couldn’t dream of producing on my own budget.

But I also hate that feeling when I finish a shot, look at it, and think, “That’s cool… but it’s not really mine.”

Prompting isn’t the same as filmmaking. It’s not the same as being on set, working with actors, or crafting a shot that took ten takes to get right.

AI gives us shortcuts - incredible ones - but it also takes away the satisfaction of the long road.

And maybe that’s the real danger: not that AI will replace artists, but that it will replace the struggle that made art meaningful in the first place.

Where This Is All Going

AI will keep improving. There will be Sora 3, 4, 5 - maybe one day it’ll truly look indistinguishable from a Hollywood film.

But even then, I like to believe human creativity isn’t going anywhere.

Because art isn’t just about what we make. It’s about why we make it.

And that “why” - that messy, emotional, human motivation - isn’t programmable.

Final Thought

Sora 2 is impressive. Groundbreaking, even.

But if it’s leading us toward a future where art becomes just another automated product line, then maybe what’s really “cooked” isn’t Hollywood - it’s us.