Venice-Set Reply AI Film Festival Unveils Finalists & Jury Featuring Gabriele Salvatores, Catherine Hardwicke & Jed Weintrob
The Reply AI Film Festival, in its third year, will present its awards at Venice Film Festival this September after selecting ten finalists from a pool of three thousand short films created using artificial intelligence tools. The selection process, based around the 2026 theme of "Imaginatio Nova", resulted in a diverse range of works exploring narratives from contemporary global conflicts to speculative futures.
The festival's adjudication panel includes Academy Award-winning director Gabriele Salvatores alongside acclaimed filmmakers Rob Minkoff and Catherine Hardwicke, supported by visual effects specialists, production professionals, and international development representatives. The ceremony will confer three distinctions: a main award for the strongest short film, a recognition for works addressing United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and a prize for outstanding innovation in artificial intelligence use throughout production. The event occurs concurrently with Venice Film Festival's historic debut of an officially selected feature film created through artificial intelligence.
In short
- Third edition of Reply AI Film Festival selects ten finalists from 3,000 AI-generated short films for September awards at Venice
- Prestigious jury features Oscar-winner Gabriele Salvatores and Hollywood directors; three awards including UN Sustainable Development Goals focus
- Venice Film Festival marks milestone with first officially selected AI-created feature film in parallel programming
Explained simply
The Reply AI Film Festival celebrates short films made using artificial intelligence tools. Now in its third year, it showcases what storytellers can create when directing these tools to generate images and narratives, with this year drawing finalists from three thousand submissions across themes ranging from contemporary conflicts to imagined futures.
The festival's jury includes Oscar-winning director Gabriele Salvatores alongside acclaimed filmmakers Rob Minkoff and Catherine Hardwicke, supported by visual effects specialists and production professionals. The festival awards three prizes: one for the strongest film overall, one recognising works that address United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and one celebrating innovation in how artificial intelligence was used during production.
The Reply AI Film Festival is presented at Venice Film Festival alongside a historic development: Venice's first official selection of a feature film made entirely through artificial intelligence. Together, these events signal how major international film festivals are increasingly treating artificial intelligence as a legitimate filmmaking medium rather than a novelty.
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