Runway AI Festival opens submissions

Runway is taking entries for an artificial intelligence festival until April 20 at 4:59 p.m. Eastern time, and the finalists will be shown at gala screenings in New York on June 11 and Los Angeles on June 18. The event now spans six categories instead of just film: film, new media, gaming, design, advertising, and fashion. (aiff.runwayml.com 1) (aiff.runwayml.com 2) That change tells you what Runway thinks the market looks like in 2026. The company started this event in 2022 as an artificial intelligence film festival, and its official site now calls this the fourth annual edition and an “interdisciplinary celebration” instead of a film-only contest. (aiff.runwayml.com) The pitch is not “send us your idea.” The submission page says Runway wants projects that use emerging artificial intelligence tools as a core part of the creative process, which means finished work matters more than a concept deck. (aiff.runwayml.com) The film track is narrow enough to show what Runway is rewarding. Films have to run 3 to 15 minutes, include generative video, and tell a fully contained linear story, which filters out loose demos and open-ended experiments. (aiff.runwayml.com) The money is also large enough to make this more than a community showcase. Runway lists more than $135,000 in awards across all tracks, with a Grand Prix of $50,000 plus 1,000,000 Runway credits, followed by Gold at $15,000 and Silver at $10,000. (aiff.runwayml.com 1) (aiff.runwayml.com 2) Runway is building the festival around physical venues that already signal prestige in film and performance. The New York screening is set for Alice Tully Hall, and the Los Angeles screening is set for The Broad Stage Theater. (aiff.runwayml.com) The company is also using the festival to widen the definition of what “artificial intelligence creator” means. Its main product site now markets not just video generation, but world models and real-time video agents, so a festival that includes gaming, design, and new media matches the tools it is trying to sell. (runwayml.com) That makes the deadline unusually practical for students and early-career builders. If you already have a short film, interactive piece, fashion concept, or game prototype that uses generative tools, April 20 is close enough that the winners will likely be people shipping work now, not people planning something for later. (aiff.runwayml.com 1) (aiff.runwayml.com 2) Runway’s site says selected work will be shown online, screened in both cities, and then shown at partner festivals around the world. For creators trying to turn an artificial intelligence side project into a public portfolio item, that is closer to a festival circuit than a product demo day. (aiff.runwayml.com)