Nadeem Persico-Shammas

Yarrow - Building/Community

2026-07-08T13:00:00-04:00

editor, colorist, post-sound mixer

Building/Community is my second series for Yarrow highlighting impact-focused housing and community development efforts in Michigan.

My social media video work for Yarrow is available to watch on their Facebook page.

LLM Creative Writing: Fine, But Boring

2026-03-15T00:00:00-04:00

Skeptics have argued that A.I. can never be truly creative, because it lacks the kind of worldly experiences humans have.

The New York Times’ recent quizlet “Who’s a Better Writer: A.I. or Humans?” claims that many people prefer LLM-generated writing to human-authored work, but critically misunderstands why that may be. Furthermore, I don’t think they understand why someone might prefer the work of the “world’s best human writers.” I took the quiz and, surprise surprise, I preferred the human-authored texts every time. Not because they were clearer or easier to understand, but because the prose sparkled on more than just the surface level. The NYT’s explanation at the quiz’s end reveals their ignorance:

Maybe you also noticed that human writing often includes some clunky phrases, like this passage from Cormac McCarthy’s “Blood Meridian,” caused by the author’s aversion to punctuation: “As well ask men what they think of stone.”

A.I. used to make mistakes like these. But today’s systems are much more fluid than their predecessors — so fluid, in fact, that finding grammatical errors or nonstandard syntax is often a hint that you’re looking at a human’s prose, not a machine’s.

Creative choices in prose are not “mistakes”. “Clunky phrases” are a feature, not a bug. Writers play with language to create a characteristic voice that evokes an image or emotion in the mind of the reader; it’s not all about clarity and information. Here’s the full McCarthy quote, followed by the Claude Opus imitation:

It makes no difference what men think of war, said the judge. War endures. As well ask men what they think of stone. War was always here. Before man was, war waited for him. The ultimate trade awaiting its ultimate practitioner. That is the way it was and will be.

The boy asked his grandfather why the old church had no roof. The old man said weather and time and indifference. The boy asked if someone could fix it. The grandfather said yes. But no one would. Things were built and things fell down and mostly people just stepped over the rubble on their way to somewhere else.

Take the sentence they cited, “As well ask men what they think of stone,” which they attributed to a lack of punctuation. But that’s wrong — McCarthy elided the word “might” at the beginning of the sentence because that’s how The Judge speaks. “Before man was” similarly elides “here” or “around” at its end, but the verb “was” is so broad that it also just works on its own. McCarthy famously eschews quote marks for dialogue; in this example, it blurs the line between character and narrator to give the reader a subconscious sense of the totality of Blood Meridian.

I like the LLM’s focus on human indifference, and we can see that it knew to eschew the quote marks and vary the sentence length, but the lines themselves are too correct. Anyone competent could have written what Claude Opus produced; only McCarthy could have written Blood Meridian.

Not every human writer can write truly outstanding prose, but only humans are (currently) capable of writing prose that plays with itself. Good prose isn’t just the sum of “worldly experiences”. It’s musical, rhythmic, and above all, playful. This LLM experiment ingested good prose and shit out polished turds designed to go down smooth, to be inoffensive to its consumers.

See also the video essay If I Told It: An Imperfect Portrait of ChatGPT

Spotty on the back porch

2026-02-10T00:00:00-05:00

Aspen mountains

2026-02-02T00:00:00-05:00

Until It Feels Like Worship

2025-11-21T00:00:00-05:00

editor, colorist

Until It Feels Like Worship (2025) is a narrative/documentary short film directed by Ifayomi Christine as part of Detroit Narrative Agency’s Emerging Filmmaker Fellowship. From the director:

Until It Feel’s Like Worship is a visual prayer that speaks to the journey one takes through remembrance, connection, culture, and healing when met with the weight of grief. Set against the backdrop of Black Detroit, with echoes of Southern matrilineal memory, it serves as a balm, beckoning the viewer to return to themselves, carrying the things that have nourished them, offering nourishment to others, and allowing themselves to be nourished in return.

The film is currently making the festival rounds; a screener is available upon request.

@ Brooklyn Film Festival ‘26

“Visionary Storytelling Award” @ Detroit Trinity International Film Festival ‘26

Yarrow - Around Ypsi

2025-10-08T00:00:00-04:00

editor, colorist, post-sound mixer

Around Ypsi is a feature series for Yarrow, a real estate company in Ypsilanti MI, highlighting and celebrating local businesses and Ypsi culture.

My social media video work for Yarrow is available to watch on their Facebook page.

Obsidian Theatre Festival

2025-08-15T00:00:00-04:00

editor, colorist

Launched in March 2021, the Obsidian Theatre Festival is a celebration of Black artists, playwrights, musicians, and performers in the heart of Detroit. Filmed before a live audience, the plays, cabarets, panel discussions, and musicals are all available to stream online for free on their website.

I’ve worked as their video editor every year since the beginning, and it’s incredibly gratifying to bring these fresh stories to the world. You can watch two of my latest works below, and I encourage you to visit their site and sign up to stream the rest.

(title pending) | OTF ‘23

The Underground Color Wheel | OTF ‘23

Witten Contracting

2025-07-07T00:00:00-04:00

editor, colorist, post-sound mixer

Witten Contracting is a full-service residential remodeler focusing on custom bathrooms, kitchens, and more.

My social media video work for them is available to watch on their Facebook page.

Seagull

2025-05-24T00:00:00-04:00

Lamps

2024-02-11T00:00:00-05:00

Community Music School Detroit

2023-09-26T00:00:00-04:00

editor, colorist, post-sound mixer

CMSD provides music education and enrichment courses. I edited all videos on their website.

Babka

2023-09-10T00:00:00-04:00

Bees

2023-08-23T00:00:00-04:00

Detroit We Dey

2023-06-01T00:00:00-04:00

post-sound mixer

Detroit We Dey is a short documentary exploring the dancehall culture and community of Nigerian immigrants in Detroit.

Produced for HOMEGROWN: Future Visions short film initiative for PBS.

@ Cleveland International Film Festival ‘23

@ FREEP Film Festival ‘23

Sydney G. James: How We See Us

2023-03-21T00:00:00-04:00

editor, post-sound mixer

Filmmaker Juanita Anderson follows visual artist Sydney G. James, whose bold brush strokes in murals and large-scale paintings amplify the presence of Black women, Black families and Black culture in her hometown of Detroit.

Produced for Firelight Media and American Masters for PBS.

“Best Documentary Short” @ Reel Sisters Film Festival ‘23

“Hometown Talent Award” @ FREEP Film Festival ‘23

Silver award, Online Documentary - Short Form @ Telly Awards ‘24

@ Big Sky Documentary Film Festival ‘23

@ Pan African Film Festival ‘23

@ Black Star Film Festival ‘23

Autumn Trees

2022-10-08T00:00:00-04:00

Made A Universe

2022-06-18T00:00:00-04:00

asst. editor, post-sound mixer

(Trailer above)

An experimental short film (and accompanying 4D installation) commissioned by Cranbrook Art Museum and directed by artist/musician Tunde Olaniran.

Underneath the Witness

2020-04-22T00:00:00-04:00

a video essay series closely reading Thekla, Inc’s 2016 video game The Witness.