If you guessed it, or saw the disclaimer, the Coca-Cola advertisement is entirely generated by generative AI, or as Coca-Cola calls it, “Real Magic AI.”

First of all, the ad does not look magical; it seems uncanny. Secondly, people disliked Coca-Cola’s previous AI promotional video, so it is unclear why the managers in charge decided to continue using AI for marketing.

“Why can’t Coca-Cola make ads like this with a soul and a heart in them,” said Culpeons in the YouTube comments.
That’s what we’re missing in today’s world: authentic artistic craft.

With Intermarché’s commercial, “Conte de Noël,” it doesn’t feel like an advertisement, but instead a short film. You can’t even tell it’s an ad until the very end, while Coca-Cola’s ad, “Holidays Are Coming,” doesn’t send a message or provoke any emotion.

“[WHAT DO YOU MEAN] THIS WAS AN AD,” said by jorgeruela5 on Instagram. “MAN, I WANTED SO BAD TO SEE THIS MOVIE.”

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IRONY: According to YouTube analytics, Coca-Cola's ad received 1.6 million views, but earned only 11,000 likes, with 192,000 dislikes. Compared to the animated French ad, which got 2.4 million views, with 95,000 likes and 365 dislikes. Not only that, but on Instagram, Intermarché's ad received 986,000 likes.

“Conte de Noël” also reminded me of DreamWorks’ “The Bad Guys” style.

The attention to detail is surreal, compared to the photorealistic slop that was created by typing prompts.

“Did anyone notice that the wolf plushie changes expressions?” said Christian Jiang in the YouTube comments. “At the start of this short movie, its eyes are angry, but at the end, when the kid is sleeping, hugging it, the eyes are way less menacing.”

The well-recognized (and deserved) French animated ad resembled a blend of 2D and 3D animation, and it looks terrific.

Coca-Cola claims that they’re advancing and that there is no going back. “We need to keep moving forward and pushing the envelope… The genie is out of the bottle, and you’re not going to put it back in,” said Coca-Cola.

Additionally, this doesn’t benefit anyone and goes against the marketing goal. You’re supposed to spend money on marketing to make more money in return. However, because they decided to save money by using AI, they are gaining no profit due to the backlash they are receiving.

Another consequence is that AI replaces the workers who create the video, allowing the company to save a few extra dollars, but leaving them without a job.

“The Coca‑Cola Company is a total beverage company,” said their website, “offering more than 200 brands—from sodas to waters, from coffees to teas, from juices to kombuchas, and a growing list of flavored alcohol beverages —in more than 200+ countries and territories.”

There’s a glaring typographical error in that sentence: there is an extra space before the second hyphen. It shows how sloppy they are and how they make simple, avoidable errors such as this one. Coincidentally, AI writing loves to use hyphens, and it’s almost like a human didn’t spend their time writing that sentence.

And of course, it’s the European countries making impressive art compared to America, and are “still keeping traditional animation alive,” said Ograws in the YouTube comments.

America has always had problems with monopolies or big corporations seeking only profits. We can’t blame them in a capitalist country. However, it sucks that the reliance on human creativity and morale is thrown out the window.

So, what does this mean? AI isn’t entirely bad, especially in the medical field, where radiologists developed AI to detect cancer. AI should be a tool to assist with tasks.

However, the issue arises with generative AI, which companies are using to automate creative jobs, such as composing illustrations, music, and videos.

It sucks for me as a film student because it degrades the quality of content and gets rid of artistic expression. Why would I watch a movie made only with AI?