Gabriele Salvatores, together with Rob Minkoff, Catherine Hardwicke, Jed Weintrob, Christina Lee Storm, Nils Hartmann, Guillem Martinez Roura, Filippo Rizzante, Giacomo Mineo, Brian Welk and Denise Negri, will judge the short films in competition based on creativity, production quality and the use of Artificial Intelligence.
Reply [EXM, STAR: REY], an international group specialized in creating new business models enabled by AI and long committed to guiding younger generations in exploring emerging technologies, presents the jury of the third edition of the Reply AI Film Festival, the international competition aimed at creatives, directors, and filmmakers who want to challenge themselves in producing short films created using Artificial Intelligence tools
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"Imaginatio Nova" is the theme of the 2026 edition, an invitation to explore a new phase of imagination, where human creativity is renewed through technology.
Leading the jury will be Gabriele Salvatores, Italian director and screenwriter known for films such as Nirvana, Siberian Education, and Napoli New York, and Academy Award winner for Best Foreign Language Film with Mediterraneo. Joining him on the panel for the third edition of the Reply AI Film Festival are Rob Minkoff, co-director of The Lion King and animator and creator of numerous films such as Stuart Little, The Haunted Mansion, and Mr. Peabody Sherman, along with Catherine Hardwicke, director of the global phenomenon Twilight. They are joined by Jed Weintrob, director and partner at 30 Ninjas, alongside Christina Lee Storm, award-winning film producer, former DreamWorks Animation and Netflix executive, and Head of Studio, Narrative at Secret Level, film journalist and IndieWire reporter Brian Welk and Giacomo Mineo, VFX supervisor for blockbusters such as Oppenheimer and Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey, and Primetime Emmy nominee for Devs by Alex Garland.
"I am delighted to join the Reply AI Film Festival and contribute to an initiative that looks to the future of cinematic language with curiosity and openness. It will be especially inspiring to welcome works from all over the world, created using generative AI tools that, when placed in service of an authentic vision, can further enhance the talent, sensibility, and creative perspective of the director", commented Gabriele Salvatores
Completing the jury are Filippo Rizzante, Chief Technology Officer of Reply; Guillem Martinez Roura, AI Robotics Lead at ITU "AI for Good," the United Nations agency focused on using AI to improve society; Nils Hartmann, Executive Vice President of Sky Studios Italy and producer of successful TV series such as Gomorrah: The Series, The Young Pope, and ZeroZeroZero; and Sky Italia film journalist Denise Negri
"Imaginatio Nova" is the theme of the 2026 edition, an invitation to explore a new phase of imagination, where human creativity is renewed through technology. The jury will evaluate submissions received by June 1, 2026, on the platform aiff.reply.com, based on creativity, production quality, and the use of AI across the various stages of production, from screenplay to post-production.
In addition to selecting the most deserving original short films, the jury will also vote on the works to be awarded two special prizes: the AI for Good Award, promoted in collaboration with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), dedicated to the best short film highlighting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the Reply AI Studios Grand Prix, which celebrates excellence and innovation in the use of artificial intelligence.
The finalist short films will have the opportunity to take part in a premiere event organized by Reply and Mastercard, to be held in Venice in September, during which the overall winners will be announced.
This initiative is part of the Reply Challenges, a program of technological and creative competitions that demonstrates Reply's commitment to developing innovative educational models capable of engaging younger generations. Today, the Reply Challenges community counts nearly 250,000 participants worldwide.
Sky Italia will be the media partner of the Reply AI Film Festival, a collaboration that further strengthens the initiative's positioning within the media entertainment landscape.
Reply
Reply [EXM, STAR: REY, ISIN: IT0005282865] specialises in the design and implementation of solutions based on new communication channels and digital media. As a network of highly specialised companies, Reply supports major industrial groups in the telecom and media; industry and services; banking and insurance and public sectors in defining and developing business models enabled by the new paradigms of AI, cloud computing, digital media and the internet of things. Reply's services include: consulting, system integration and digital services. www.reply.com
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Contacts:
MEDIA CONTACT:
Reply
Fabio Zappelli
f.zappelli@reply.com
Tel. +390117711594
Irene Caia
i.caia@reply.com
Tel. +3902545761
