Jeroen Hallaert

The through-line

Everything Hallaert says circles back to one conviction: new technology in entertainment is additive, not substitutive. Generative AI, headsets and display innovation all get measured against the same test, whether they leave more room for the human work of creativity and for the shared experience an audience comes for. His framing is consistently developmental rather than apocalyptic, and it comes with a geography attached: the centre of gravity in this industry is still Los Angeles, while the capability that serves it is distributed, including in Belgium [2].

On AI as a tool, not a replacement

His most repeated image is a domestic one. "AI is momenteel een stevige kleuter die nog altijd gezonde voeding moet hebben, nog altijd zijn pamper moet ververst hebben... hoe beter dat we AI opvoeden, hoe beter dat we er in de toekomst van kunnen gebruik maken" [1][2]. The responsibility in that formulation sits with the industry rather than the technology: the quality of what comes back later depends on how it is raised now. Alongside it sits a flat categorical distinction, "Ai is nog altijd iets generatief, dat is niet creatief. Er zit nog een human aspect aan verbonden" [2].

The practical version is unfussy. "Het is gewoon een andere tool in de toolbag... als we kunnen meer tijd stoppen in creativiteit, gaat ook de kwaliteit van de producties naar boven" [1]. The concrete example he reaches for is the pitch process: generative AI can already produce a full storyboard for a TV show concept, which speeds up the pitch without touching the storytelling core [1][2]. He does not pretend this is neutral for employment, but he describes the effect as jobs shifting rather than disappearing [2]. The upside he cares about is the time released, and where it should go, which is back into the creative work.

On screens, headsets and the shared experience

He is sceptical that VR and AR headsets displace anything, for a structural reason rather than a technical one: they remain individual experiences, and entertainment is fundamentally about being in a group [1][2]. That is why he expects physical screens to stay relevant. The direction of travel he sees is not away from screens but through them, toward transparent and eventually invisible screen technology [1], and further out toward holographic displays that make the technology itself disappear [2].

On the entertainment industry as an industrial capability

He treats entertainment companies as serious logistics and construction operations, not just creative suppliers. After the LA fires, the city began discussing using entertainment industry companies for the rebuild, precisely because they are good at logistics and at building fast once classic construction firms have run out of capacity, and Belgian companies are already involved in that work [1][2]. He puts major sporting events in the same category: something like the LA 2028 Olympics generates long-term industrial dynamics rather than a one-off job [2].

On why Los Angeles still matters

The geographic anchor is stated without hedging: "La is nog steeds Entertainment Capital City Of The World, waar de meeste zo niet alle belangrijke beslissingen nog altijd genomen worden" [2]. It is the decision-making that keeps the city central in his account, which is the backdrop against which questions of building capacity elsewhere and keeping Flemish entertainment-tech talent at home have to be argued [1][2].

Takeaways

• Treat AI as a young child that needs raising well: the better it is fed and taught now, the more useful it becomes later [1][2].
• Generative is not creative; the human storytelling aspect remains attached to the work [2].
• Judge an AI tool by the time it releases back into creativity, because that is what raises production quality [1].
• Expect roles to shift rather than vanish; AI storyboards accelerate the TV pitch without replacing the story [1][2].
• Headsets stay individual, so physical screens survive; the real trajectory is transparent, invisible and eventually holographic display [1][2].
• Entertainment companies are a logistics and rapid-build capability, which is why they were considered for the LA rebuild after the fires, with Belgian firms already involved [1][2].
• Large events such as the LA 2028 Olympics should be read as long-term industrial dynamics, not single projects [2].
• Los Angeles remains the place where most, if not all, of the important decisions are still taken [2].