The second edition of the International Artificial Intelligence Film Festival (FESTIAV) is currently underway in València, featuring 181 short films from 38 different countries. The festival runs until 30 October and aims to explore the creative possibilities of artificial intelligence in filmmaking.
Paula Llobet, the city’s councillor for innovation, highlighted the transformative impact of artificial intelligence on the audiovisual sector during the festival's opening. She emphasised the importance of harnessing AI's potential while ensuring the protection of creators. “The fundamental question is not whether artificial intelligence will make films. It already does. The question is who will be behind it,” she stated.
FESTIAV serves as a platform for discussing critical issues in the industry, such as authorship, image rights, and artistic criteria.
Five competitive categories and expanded venues
This year's festival has expanded its presence in the city with two main venues. Activities, workshops, and professional meetings are taking place at Las Naves, located in the La Harinera building, while screenings of the selected short films are held at Cines ABC Park. The competition is divided into five categories: AI Fiction, AI Historical, AI Comedy, AI Horror, and Valencian AI, with the latter two being new additions to the competitive programme.
A jury has selected the finalist works based on narrative and artistic quality, the creative and ethical use of artificial intelligence, audiovisual innovation, and aesthetic coherence. The winners in each category will be announced during the FESTIAV 2026 gala.
FESTIAV LAB: creating a short film in 24 hours
One of the highlights of this edition is FESTIAV LAB, a creative laboratory that challenges participants to develop an original short film within 24 hours using artificial intelligence tools. Teams of two or three can work either in person or online, creating works based on shared scripts, music, and images. This challenge aims to promote experimentation, emerging talent, and collaborative work. The winning team will receive a prize of €3,000.
The festival also features FESTIAV Summit, a five-day forum that includes presentations, round tables, and professional meetings to discuss the current and future landscape of the audiovisual sector with artificial intelligence. Topics include the limits of automation, the role of the human perspective, image rights, ethics, and the new professional profiles emerging with these technologies.
