AI Filmmakers Celebrated at AIFA Awards Gala in Lisbon

AI filmmakers worldwide gathered at a prestigious red carpet awards ceremony in Lisbon recently. The inaugural AIFA Awards honored a remarkable diversity of narratives and the innovative visual language of AI. The evening also marked the introduction of the AI Film Academy, a global establishment promoting innovative creativity through emerging technologies.

Denny the Shark clinched the AImagine Award for Best Film, presenting a somber tale of a shark in dire need of dental care. The film was a creation of the collaborative duo LeMoon (Melody Bossan, France) and Ethereal Gwirl (Dina Lockamy, USA), collectively identified as Ethereal Moon.

LeMoon expressed, “The revival of my long-forgotten aspiration to be a filmmaker through AI is truly remarkable. The partnership with Ethereal Gwirl, who shares a similar life journey, was serendipitous—we both discovered AI art while being stay-at-home mothers and were instantly captivated.”

Ethereal Gwirl added, “The transition from a stay-at-home mother to crafting world-building films with this talented 'stranger' from a distant land, who seems to intuitively understand my thoughts, has been a transformative experience.”

Denny was among the 13 films selected from a global open call spanning six continents. These films were showcased to a full audience at the Non Fungible Conference on May 28. The AIFA Awards brought together luminaries from the film, art, music, and fashion realms, including Beeple, Vincent D’Onofrio, Randi Zuckerberg, and Claire Silver, alongside leading web3 technologists and entrepreneurs.

More than 400 guests graced the red carpet at The Silver Mirror, an immersive cinematic journey by featured artist Fantastic Planet. The event featured an exhibition of pioneering AI works by the AIFA Jury and the screening of the finalist films. Award announcements were made by sponsors Muse Frame, AImagine, SuperRare, and HUG, along with AIFA founders Clare Maguire and Leo Crane. The evening culminated with a mesmerizing live performance by singer NOANNE in an immersive AI setting.

Jury member Laurence Fuller contemplated the role of AI in the creative process, encapsulating the essence of the selected films: “To me, technology is a tool. It is inert, but when human hands and minds engage with it, it gains a spiritual dimension. I believe human emotions and intellect transcend technology in our ability to sense, think, and interpret the world around us.”

The works of all 13 finalists, jury members, and featured artists can be collected from a curated selection on SuperRare. These pieces will be exhibited next week at Casa Nua, the first permanent gallery for digital art in Brazil, and subsequently at the Sotheby’s Institute of Art for entrepreneurial study. Additional collaborations will be confirmed in the forthcoming weeks.