From June 30 to July 13, 2025, the SJTU Global Summer School program “Exploring AIGC in Cultural and Creative Industry” was successfully held at USC-SJTU Institute of Cultural and Creative Industry (ICCI).
Focusing on the multimodal applications of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AIGC) technology in the cultural and creative industry, this program explored the role of AI in the full-process film and television creation. It covered core modules such as the generation of text, images, videos, and audio, as well as the commercialization pathways of AIGC. Combined with visits to cutting-edge enterprises and tours of popular cultural landmarks, the program attracted a total of 21 participants from various countries and regions including Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Russia, Argentina, Malaysia, and mainland China. The collision of ideas from diverse cultural backgrounds has injected new vitality into promoting the innovative development of the cultural and creative industry.
The program kicked off on June 30. Professor Ting HAN, Secretary of CPC Party Committee of ICCI, delivered an introductory course integrating theory and application of AI. As a scholar specializing in user experience design, interaction design, and the integration of AIGC, Professor Han shared his unique insights on the development trends of AI based on national key R&D project achievements, analyzing cutting-edge industry dynamics for the participants.
On the same afternoon, program coordinator Elena HUANG welcomed the participants on behalf of ICCI and the school. Armin GUO briefly introduced the curriculum structure of this course. Subsequently, the participants visited the campus and explored ICCI’s educational philosophy of Internationalization, Interdisciplinarity, and Industry Orientation through an immersive experience of advanced intelligent teaching facilities and an international educational environment.
To conclude the opening day, Ms. Lu Wanjun, a training faculty member of the school, a distinguished expert from Beijing Normal University, and an educational drama instructor, led a unique ice-breaking activity. Under the theme of “Along the River During the Qingming Festival”, the participants took on the roles of ordinary people in Bianliang during the Northern Song Dynasty, restoring the various scenes of urban life through body language in sessions such as “cooperating to enter the painting” and “role freezing”. This not only quickly narrowed the distance between the participants but also guided them to think about the modernization path of traditional cultural IPs, laying a solid foundation for AIGC creation in subsequent courses.
Module 1: Text and Script Creation
In the Text and Script Creation module, Mr. Yu WANG, Director of the CG Creativity and Technology Laboratory at ICCI, systematically sorted out the development history and constituent elements of scripts, and in-depth analyzed the technical principles and usage skills of AI-generated text. From traditional script writing to AIGC-assisted creation, the participants gradually mastered methods to empower script creation with AI under the teacher's guidance. Working in groups, they brainstormed and initially outlined their own story scripts with the help of AI tools, and various creative story drafts emerged through collaboration.
Module 2: Image and Video Generation
In the Image and Video Generation module, Mr. Meng ZHANG, director of the AIGC Workshop at the Experimental Teaching Center of SJTU School of Media and Communication and an alumnus of ICCI, further let the participants experience the magical charm of AIGC. From the wonderful transformation of “text-to-image”, to the creative extension of “image-to-image”, and then to the dynamic presentation of “image-to-video”, Mr. Zhang’s patient and detailed explanation enabled each group of participants to successfully use various generative AI tools to convert their original scripts into visual works with distinct styles. The application of each tool and every adjustment of parameters embodied the joint efforts of teachers and students.
Module 3: Audio and Music Production
In the Audio and Music Production module, Assistant Professor Zhixin XU from ICCI comprehensively explained the development context and core principles of music technology, covering the historical evolution of music technology, the basics of sound and digital audio, spatial audio, and electronic music synthesis. He also introduced the applications of AI in music creation in depth, including the development of AI composition, related models and generation technologies, as well as the use of AI tools such as AIVA and Suno, and discussed the future of human-machine collaboration in music creation with the participants.
Practical Activities: Enterprise Visits and City Tours
In addition to classroom learning, diverse practical activities combining enterprise visits and tours of popular cultural landmarks constituted an important feature of this program. The participants visited three influential enterprises in their respective fields: Lilith Games, Kanjian Music, and China Literature Group. They communicated face-to-face with frontline practitioners, and through on-site observations and explanations, gained an in-depth understanding of cutting-edge industry trends and the practical applications of AI in various scenarios such as game development, music production, and content creation.
Furthermore, they had an immersive experience of the digital exhibition “Deep Space Future” at the West Bund Museum, feeling the charm of the collision between technology and art; witnessed how historical buildings are reborn as urban public art spaces and commercial landmarks at the 1933 Shanghai; and traced the cultural context at the Shanghai Museum East, exploring creative inspiration from contemporary cultural and creative designs.
Final Presentation and Commencement
On July 12, during the graduation showcase, the participants presented their group AIGC video works at the Advanced Intelligent Film and Television Technology Research Center of ICCI. From creative animated short films for science education to engaging narrative microfilms, each work demonstrated the participants’ unique understanding and innovative application of AIGC technology.
AIGC works video posters
Mr. Meng ZHANG commented on each group's work from multiple dimensions, including accurate refinement of the works' highlights and professional optimization suggestions, benefiting all participants present. Finally, Ms. Jiachen LIU, Assistant to the Dean of ICCI and Director of the Corporate Relations Office, awarded graduation certificates to all participants, witnessing the successful conclusion of their learning journey.
During the short but fulfilling two-week study, the participants not only mastered cutting-edge knowledge in AIGC and the cultural and creative industry, but also forged precious friendships across regions and national borders through cross-cultural communication and collaboration. This program was an encounter of knowledge, a collision of creativity, and ignited the participants’ passion for exploring the integration and innovation of AIGC and the industry. It is believed that this valuable experience will inject new inspiration and motivation into the participants’ future exploration in AIGC and content creation.