Artificial intelligence is often seen as a tool for innovation in industries like healthcare, finance, and communication, but one filmmaker is reimagining its potential in preserving history. Skip Church, a former reporter for News 8, is leveraging AI to produce historical documentaries, particularly those for which visual materials are unavailable. His innovative approach blends journalistic integrity with cutting-edge technology to reconstruct the past in an engaging and educational format.

AI as the storyteller’s tool

Skip Church began experimenting with artificial intelligence roughly two years ago to enhance his documentary work. In one of his most recent projects, The Last Pilgrim, Church uses AI to tell the story of Mary Allerton Cushman, the last surviving passenger of the Mayflower. Church finds a personal connection in this story as he is a direct descendant of Cushman. The documentary required reconstructing 17th-century life with historical accuracy, despite the absence of photographs, film, or video evidence.

“There was no film, no video, and precious few still photos,” Church explained. This lack of visual material posed a challenge for creating a compelling narrative that would resonate with audiences. To bridge the gap, he turned to AI for animations, video reconstructions, and simulations that could represent authentic landscapes, costumes, and character depictions from the era. By focusing on getting these visual details right, Church ensures that the educational and storytelling value of his films remains intact while staying true to the historical context.

Making history compelling and accessible

For Church, the decision to use AI wasn’t only about cost efficiency but also about ensuring that stories like that of Mary Allerton Cushman could be told at all. Traditional methods of documentary filmmaking often involve large crews, numerous actors, and specialized set designs, running costs into the millions of dollars. By integrating AI into his workflow, Church achieves a similar impact at a fraction of the cost.

He emphasizes that these AI-enabled productions still involve traditional filmmaking processes and skilled professionals. “I tell people that I’m creating jobs, not eliminating them,” Church remarked. Essential crew members, historical consultants, and subject matter experts remain integral to his projects, conducting interviews and fact-checking the narratives. The AI tools are simply a means to visually supplement and enhance the storytelling. This enables Church to maintain high production standards while making historical films more accessible for educational purposes and television.

Responding to criticism

As with most applications of artificial intelligence, the use of AI in creative fields has sparked debate. Critics argue that relying on AI, particularly in storytelling, risks losing the authenticity and emotional texture that human-driven creativity brings to the table. However, Church views his approach as a compromise. “I do agree that it is more compelling to see something than not to see something. We’re storytellers, right?” he noted.

Church confines the use of AI to historical time periods for which visual documentation is missing or incomplete. For instance, of the approximately 100 passengers on the Mayflower, only one verifiable portrait exists. This means that whether through traditional artistic means or AI, reconstructing these histories inevitably involves interpretive choices. Church aims to combine AI outputs with detailed historical research to keep the storytelling as grounded in fact as possible.

Extending the AI toolset to other projects

The Last Pilgrim is not Church’s first foray into AI-assisted storytelling. In another documentary titled I’m Going Home, which explores narratives of slavery, Church used similar AI-driven techniques to bring the story to life visually. Only in instances where traditional visual documentation, such as videos or photographs, is lacking does Church incorporate AI.

His method relies on generating historically plausible reconstructions by collaborating with subject matter experts. These recreations focus on locations, costumes, and movement, using inputs from historians and filmmakers to ensure fidelity. This hybrid of technology and human expertise allows historical events to be visualized for modern audiences in ways that would otherwise be impossible.

The broader implications for historical storytelling

Church’s work is representative of a larger trend in the creative industries, where AI is increasingly being used to fill gaps in knowledge or enhance storytelling. However, his projects make a compelling case for AI as a tool rather than a replacement for human creativity. They highlight how AI enables the democratization of filmmaking by making complex, resource-intensive projects more feasible for smaller teams. At the same time, they underline the importance of maintaining journalistic rigor and historical accuracy when merging art and technology.

By reanimating forgotten stories such as that of Mary Allerton Cushman and others, Skip Church offers a glimpse into how AI can be both a preserver of history and a gateway to deeper audience connection. However, while the technology presents opportunities, balancing technological innovation with ethical storytelling will remain a challenge for creators like Church in the years to come.