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The AI Film Festival is open to anyone worldwide who is 18 or older by the submission deadline (June 1, 2025).
Yes! Reply employees (Replyers) can team up with students and professionals to submit a short film for the Reply AIFF.
No. To submit your short film, you must join or create a team (1-8 members). Signing up on the platform only gives you access to updates on upcoming online challenges.
No, this initiative is completely free.
You can register and submit your short movie until June 1st 23:59 CEST.
Log in to your profile and click “Edit Profile” to update your information anytime.
To cancel your registration, email your request to challenges@reply.com. If you want to leave your team, simply click “Leave team” on your challenge page.
Log in to the platform, click the “Team up” button, and select “Create new team.” Once your team is set up, you’ll see it when you log in. You can also choose a team name and invite other members by entering their email addresses and sending an invitation.
A team can have between 1 and 8 members.
Yes, you can apply to as many teams as you like. This means you can submit different short films with each team. You can participate solo or form a team of up to 8 members.
Yes, you can ask your teammates to leave the team, or you can leave the team yourself. Keep in mind that your teammates won’t receive any notifications, so make sure to inform them.
Yes, you can also register through FilmFreeway. Please review the T&C here and the Privacy Notice here.
According to the rules, your AI short film should incorporate AI-powered tools in the creation process, but it’s not limited to generative AI. You’re free to use any AI tools during different phases of production, and you'll be asked to explain how AI was used to achieve your final result. It’s not required for your short film to be 100% AI-generated.
You should upload your short film in .mp4, .mov, or .h264 format on your challenge page. The file size must not exceed 4GB.
Additionally, you’ll need to complete a text form with questions about your work and the production process. Please make sure to fill it out thoroughly, providing all the information the jury may need to evaluate your short film effectively. The answers must be written in English.
No categories, no limits. We welcome every genre, every style, every vision – as long as AI is part of the creative process.
Here are some ideas to inspire you:
Compelling Stories: AI-enhanced storytelling with a powerful narrative at its core.
Visual innovation: Bold artistic choices, unconventional formats, pushing the boundaries of conventional cinema.
Hybrid Creations: AI combined with live action or mixed media.
Animation & VFX: AI-enhanced 2D/3D animation, motion graphics, and visual effects.
Advanced Technical Approach: Advanced AI tools and techniques, from custom-trained models to sophisticated compositing workflows.
AI-Powered Music Videos: Visuals and sound coming together in new ways.
Documentary & Mockumentary: AI exploring reality… or reshaping it.
Each team (1-8 members) can submit only one short movie. However, you can update your uploaded file as many times as you want until the deadline on July 1st at 23:59 CEST—only the latest version will be evaluated by the jury.
If you want to submit more than one short movie, you’ll need to create a new team for each additional submission.
Your AI short movie must be between 1 and 10 minutes long.
There are no specific language requirements for your short film. However, since the jury is international, English is preferred to ensure broader understanding.
Please ensure that the answers on the form are written in English.
Yes, your short film can be submitted also to other competitions, but in case you will be selected as a finalist invited to the Reply AI Film Festival Premiere Event in Venice your short movie must not be entirely available online.
Yes, each finalist TEAM can bring one MEMBER. The organization will cover travel, one-night accommodation (including dinner and transportation). Our team will reach out to you for the necessary details to arrange your stay.
During the Venice premiere, the Jury Panel will award prizes to the best three teams among the ten finalists. The winning short films will receive the following prizes:
8,000.00 € for the short film in 1st place.
5,000.00 € for the short film in 2nd place
2,000.00 € for the short film in 3rd place.
Each prize will be divided among the members of the winning team and will be delivered within 60 days. Registered users will be contacted to provide the bank details necessary for the prize transfer.
The "Amazing" experience has always been central to Lexus's pursuit of excellence, merging technology and design to develop intuitive interactions between the driver and the vehicle, offering an unprecedented level of comfort and luxury. Thanks to artificial intelligence, Lexus is already creating an even more personal and dynamic luxury that adapts to the uniqueness of each driver, leveraging the full potential of SDVs (Software Defined Vehicles), which represent the future of mobility, and which Lexus is once again bringing to our roads ahead of its time.
To celebrate the potential of artificial intelligence, Lexus has created the Lexus Visionary Award, an award that honors the creativity and ingenuity of filmmakers and artists who use AI to explore new narrative and visual frontiers. The most visionary and innovative work, which best integrates technology, design, and future intuition, will receive the prestigious award, thus embodying the values that have always guided Lexus's visionary spirit. A journey capable of opening new possibilities, elevating people's experiences in a blend of technology and creativity, and paving the way for the future in both.
A special thanks to Lexus for this opportunity and the great support in realizing the Reply AI Film Festival 2025.
Bridging the power of technology, storytelling, and social impact, this prize will be awarded to the short movies that highlight the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) while celebrating human creativity in AI-enhanced filmmaking.
To be a candidate in this category:
The Short Film must highlight one or more of humanity’s biggest challenges.
The team needs to flag the checkbox at the end of the submission forms, also including the brief description of how the Short Film spotlights and addresses global challenges.
Four short films will be selected by ITU from the candidates and screened during the AI for Good Summit 2025 in Geneva, from July 8th to 11th, 2025.
While no monetary prize will be awarded, the opportunity to have your film screened at this prestigious event is a celebratory recognition offered by ITU.
One member from each of the four selected teams will receive the Leader Pass, granting access to the AI for Good Summit 2025, where their short film will be showcased.
A sincere thank you to ITU for this opportunity.
[ENDED] The first 300 participants who submit a short film to the Reply AI Film Festival through challenges.reply.com will receive a special code granting free access to the Dream Machine Unlimited plan by Luma AI until June 1st.
Use this powerful generative AI tool to enhance your submission or even create a brand-new short film from scratch! You can update your submission as many times as needed until the final deadline: June 1st at 23:59 CEST.
A huge thank you to Luma AI for making this possible!
After the deadline on June 1st at 23:59 CEST, the Jury Panel will review all submissions and select ten finalists. These finalists will be invited to attend a premiere event hosted by Reply and Mastercard in Venice, taking place between August 27th and September 6th, 2025.
Each short film and the answers on the form describing the use of generative AI will be qualitatively evaluated by the Jury Panel, at their incontestable discretion, based on the following criteria:
AI impact: How significantly AI contributes to the short film’s production.
Creativity: The innovative approach to the film’s communication.
Craftsmanship: The overall quality of the film’s production.
Gabriele Muccino is an Italian film director and screenwriter born in Rome in 1967. After studying film at the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Cinecittà, he made his debut in cinema in 1997 with his first film "Ecco fatto", followed by "Come te nessuno mai" in 1999, which received great public and critical acclaim at the Venice Film Festival.
In the following years, Muccino directed films such as "L'ultimo bacio" (2001), "Ricordati di me" (2003), and "Kiss Me Again" (2010), which solidified his position as one of the leading figures of the Italian film scene.
In 2005, Muccino directed "The Pursuit of Happyness", a biographical drama starring Will Smith, which received critical and commercial success. He then directed "Seven Pounds" (2007), another film with Will Smith, and "Playing for Keeps" (2012), a romantic comedy with Gerard Butler and Jessica Biel.
In recent years, Muccino has continued to work in both Italy and the US. He directed "Fathers and Daughters" (2015), a drama starring Russell Crowe and Amanda Seyfried, and "There Is No Place Like Home" (2018), a comedy-drama also known as "A casa tutti bene", which won the David di Donatello dello Spettatore award.
In addition to his film work, Muccino has also created a TV series based on his film "A casa tutti bene", which premiered on Sky Television in 2021. The series, which Muccino wrote and directed, consists of two seasons and has received positive reviews.
Muccino's latest film, "Here Now" (2024), is a thriller starring Elena Kampouris and Saul Nanni, which was shot in both English and Italian by the same cast. The film premiered at the Rome Film Festival and marks a new chapter in Muccino's career.
Photo by Riccardo Ghilardi
Rob Minkoff is a renowned American animator, producer, and director. He is best known for co-directing the acclaimed Disney animated feature "The Lion King" (1994). Minkoff’s career in animation and directing spans several notable films, including "Stuart Little" (1999), "The Haunted Mansion" (2003), and "Mr. Peabody & Sherman" (2014).
Minkoff developed a passion for animation at an early age and later studied at the California Institute of the Arts in the early 1980s. His early work includes contributions as an animator to Disney films like "The Great Mouse Detective" (1986) and “The Little Mermaid” (1989). Throughout his career, he has explored a wide range of subjects from lions on the Savannah, to mice in Manhattan, and martial arts in ancient China, making him a significant figure in the animation and film industries, known for his ability to craft engaging and memorable stories across different genres and formats.
Dave Clark is an award-winning filmmaker at the forefront of integrating Generative AI into film, TV, and advertising. He is currently the Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer at Promise. Recognized as a leading voice for his ability to seamlessly blend nuanced storytelling with cutting-edge technology, he has become one of the most sought-after artists, with top filmmakers and storytellers worldwide turning to him for guidance on this transformative technology.
Clark recently amassed millions of views for his groundbreaking AI directing work, including his short film “Battalion,” which focused on the only Black unit to arrive on Omaha Beach in Normandy during World War 2. It quickly captured the attention of Hollywood, with many top directors reaching out to learn more about the technology behind it. Dave also garnered widespread acclaim when he released the world’s first hybrid narrative genre short, “Another,” combining live-action and Gen AI. It was screened during his keynote presentation at Cannes Next in 2024.
Over his career, Dave has also been a successful brand marketer and commercial director – creating films, immersive engagements, and brand spots for companies like Google, Snapchat, Coca-Cola, Hewlett Packard, Warner Bros., and Intel.
Dave has spoken about the future of filmmaking at prestigious events around the globe, including the Berlinale, MIT, Indiewire, Sundance, Picture This Conference, and the Cannes Film Festival. He resides in Southern California with his wife Ashley and three children, Stori, Millean and Carter.
Caleb Ward: CEO/Artist - Curious Refuge
Caleb Ward is the CEO of Curious Refuge, an online platform pioneering the use of AI in film. He is deeply dedicated to democratizing the creative process by unlocking the inner storyteller inside everyone. His AI training empowers artists at every end of the creative spectrum, from training Academy Award Winners to aspiring artists looking to learn storytelling for the first time. He has trained thousands of artists worldwide and in every major studio. He believes AI is dramatically changing the creative landscape and elevating the creative potential of artists around the world.
Shelby Ward: COO/Artist - Curious Refuge
Shelby Ward is the COO of Curious Refuge, the world’s first online home for AI Filmmakers. Shelby has spent her career cultivating artist education communities in motion design and VFX, assisting artists at the highest levels of the industry, from Disney to Netflix. She is passionate about creating an optimistic and inclusive creative community centered around modern technology. She is a regular voice on film industry panels, and her AI films have been screened around the world.
Curious Refuge is an online home for anyone who wants to utilize AI tools to create incredible art. We are pioneering a new way to utilize AI to create the future of storytelling.
Filippo Rizzante is the CTO and a member of the Board of Directors at Reply.
Filippo began his career at Reply in 1999. In the early years, he primarily focused on consulting and projects for the web division within the Group, specifically on developing B2B and B2C portals.
In 2006, Filippo became an Executive Partner of the Reply Group, responsible for the companies within the Group that handle Oracle technologies, Security, Information Lifecycle Management, Web 2.0, and Open Source.
Over the years, he has held increasingly senior roles within the Group, taking direct responsibility for various business lines, including Architectures and Technologies, Digital Media, and Mobile.
Since 2012, as CTO of Reply, he has led the development of new offerings related to technological innovation and has been responsible for all Group-level partnerships.
Filippo holds a degree in Computer Engineering from the Politecnico di Torino.
Caroline Ingeborn is COO at Luma, the AI video company behind the frontier generative model Ray2 and the creative platform Dream Machine, which attracted 25M users in just five months and set new standards in motion, realism, and efficiency. She brings a rare blend of consumer, tech, and entertainment experience: previously CEO of Toca Boca, she led the company to 60M monthly users and 5x revenue growth, and co-founded Leap, a platform focused on fostering meaningful human connection. At Luma, she’s helping shape the future of storytelling with AI.
Guillem Martínez Roura is the Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Robotics Programme Officer at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations specialized agency for digital technologies. He works at the intersection of AI, technology, and global cooperation and development, driving initiatives that shape the future role of AI, robotics, and other emerging technologies in addressing humanity’s greatest challenges.
Charlie Fink is a consultant, columnist, author, producer, podcaster, and adjunct, covering AI, XR, and the Metaverse for Forbes. He is the author of the critically acclaimed AR-enabled books Charlie Fink’s Metaverse (2017), and Convergence (2019). Fink teaches at Chapman University in Orange, CA, and ASU LA.
Denise Negri, a renowned journalist at Sky TG24, covers prestigious cinema events like the Academy Awards, Cannes, and Venice film festivals. A respected media figure, she is also a presenter at Sky Arte.
The Premiere event will be held between August 27th, 2025, and September 6th, 2025. Each finalist team will be notified at least 25 days before the event to coordinate travel arrangements with our staff.
The organization will cover:
One-night accommodation
Dinner for one member of the finalist team
All transfers during the stay in Venice
Round-trip tickets to Venice
Our team will reach out to arrange all the details for your stay.
No, the Reply AI Film Festival is not part of the official program of the 82nd Venice International Film Festival. The Reply AI Film Festival is an independent event and thanks to our partnership with Mastercard, it will be hosted in the exclusive spaces of the Hotel Excelsior, offering a unique setting for the occasion.
You'll receive updates via email, so be sure to check your inbox regularly.
If you have any questions during the submission phase, you can also reach out to us on Discord or via email at aiff@reply.com.
All official communications will be in English. However, you and your teammates are free to speak any language you prefer! 😊
Read the full Terms & Conditions of the competition.