Loading
The AI on the Lot team welcomes attendees to the conference.
Albert Cheng, Head of AI Studios at Amazon MGM Studios, sits down with Jay Tucker, Executive Director of the UCLA Center for Media, Entertainment & Sports, to explore how Amazon MGM Studios is integrating generative AI into the creative process. Cheng will share how the studio is partnering with filmmakers to make cinematic storytelling possible through AI and technology that amplifies human creativity.
In this live, interactive ComfyUI workshop for new to intermediate users, Artist Julien Durand will walk attendees through the ComfyUI interface on and build a complete AI creative pipeline from scratch, covering image generation and upscaling with Z-Image Turbo, LLM integration with QwenVL, and image-to-video with LTX-2.3, all brought together into one unified workflow, before moving into frame editing with Qwen-Image-Edit and character-level control using Union Control IC LoRA in LTX-2.3. The lab will include 20 Dell Pro Max with GB10 workstations for attendees to use, available on a first-come, first-served basis. Attendees who do not get a workstation can still follow along on their own laptops. Attendees will leave with working workflows ready to use on their own projects.
Jessica Fan, Head of Animation, AI Studios, Amazon MGM Studios, and Rebecca Keegan, Senior Hollywood Reporter, NBC News, join visionary creators in a conversation about storytelling and filmmaking in the age of AI. Creators will share never-before-seen footage from work made with Gen AI tools developed by AI Studios and built on AWS.
In this conversation, producers and actors will discuss the traditional difficulties of getting indie projects off the ground, and how AI has allowed them to greenlight a slate of projects that wouldn't have been possible just a few years before. From the star of The Handmaid's Tale to The Old Story: Moses with Ben Kingsley, hear how OT Fagbenle teamed up with Massive Studios to help bring an original series Hollywood wouldn’t normally finance to a major streamer. Then hear from Rob Friedman, the studio head behind billion-dollar franchises and Oscar winners including The Twilight Saga, John Wick, The Hunger Games, La La Land, and The Hurt Locker.
How do you turn generative AI's unpredictability into an artist-directed workflow that amplifies creative possibilities with the rigor production requires? Foundry is bridging this gap with infrastructure that provides the control needed to blend generated, rendered, and live action elements and scale creativity across the entire production lifecycle. Join this session to explore how creative control, pipeline automation, and generative workflows come together. We’ll demonstrate how an idea can move from initial concept and asset generation through to final post using Griptape’s AI-orchestration framework as the connective tissue between AI models and your current pipeline. See how established filmmaking tools like Nuke work in concert with Griptape, allowing you to hold the reins during creative experimentation and maintain a clear path to a deliverable frame.
More and more production houses are vibe-coding bespoke, production-ready tools. In this session, one of Hollywood's most in-demand vibe coders contracted by several major studios will walk attendees through planning and creating their own tools using AI. No technical experience required. Laptops highly recommended. Attendees will leave with their own personal tool and the ability to keep building more.
In this session Dreamina will introduce Octo, a new agent that unlocks the full potential of Dreamina Seedance 2.0. Through conversation, experimentation, and shared inquiry, this session will uncover the next paradigm of AI-native creation and the distinctive value of human-AI collaboration.
How should AI video tools look and behave for filmmakers can actually use them? Designers behind market-leading products discuss how to design beyond chat and node-based interfaces, explain the current design paradigms in agentic filmmaking, and hazard their best guess towards what we’ll see in the next two years.
Join us for the global premiere of a major new addition to ElevenLabs' Iconic Marketplace. This is a conversation about iconic storytelling and and how AI is becoming a genuine creative collaborator in the room. We'll explore how iconic production companies are (and aren't) integrating AI into their workflows, what that future looks like for celebrity licensing, and where the industry goes from here.
As multiple social media accounts garner millions of followers behind the face of a synthetically created character, people are asking a lot of questions: What is an AI influencer? Do audiences like them? And do they make money? Creators behind popular synthetic influencers talk through the phenomenon with lead investors from the creator economy space. Attendees will leave with a firm understanding of the rise AI influencers, how they win audiences, and how they become large businesses.
The question now isn’t whether brands belong in premium storytelling, but how to do it at scale with cinematic storytelling. Imagine has led this shift for years, shaping work for Nike, Ford, Coca-Cola, and Apple. This conversation between Justin Wilkes (President, Imagine Entertainment) and Wes Walker (Founder, Obsidian) looks at how and where AI is helping this important shift to brand-funded storytelling.
AI is unlocking new possibilities for storytelling and production—and in the process, forging unprecedented partnerships between major studios, technology startups, and creative talent. This panel brings together AWS's Samira Bakhtiar, Amazon MGM Studios' Matt Newman, and fal co-founder Gorkem Yurtseven to explore how emerging AI tools are breaking down traditional barriers, enabling new forms of collaboration, and reshaping the way content gets made. From cloud-powered production pipelines to generative tools built by nimble startups, our panelists will share how these new partnerships are redefining what's possible in Hollywood—and who gets a seat at the table.
Pitching projects with heavy AI elements is its own new skill. In this panel, top agents and AI-forward directors will talk through who's buying AI pitches, how to effectively shape these pitches, and how the process has changed over the last year. Attendees will learn how to position their AI-driven projects to the right buyers.
The film industry is facing a practical challenge: how to actually make AI work in production without losing the thing that makes great filmmaking great. Studio heads, executives, and investors are grappling with this shift as massive spikes in the adoption of AI platforms signal that AI is already deeply embedded into professional workflows at the highest levels. Done right, AI hands more creative control back to the filmmaker. This session brings together Ira Belsky, Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Artlist; Buzz Hays, Global Market Lead Entertainment Industry at Google Cloud; Jeffrey Kember, Senior Director of Product at NVIDIA; and Kevin Baillie, DGA Director and VFX Supervisor, the people actually making it work. Moderated by Dikla Bengio who leads Global Partnerships at Artlist, this will be a grounded conversation on what’s actually working, what’s being built, and how AI is being used in production today.
Get a look inside the latest cohort of AI-forward production houses. Six of the top AI studios give lightning round presentations on their business model, work process, and house style. These presenters cover the range of generative media use cases: viral internet videos, VFX work on Hollywood productions, and even the pioneering 'gray-box' production techniques from Doug Liman's latest film. Attendees will leave with an understanding of six different, innovative approaches to the current market. Presenting Order: Genre, Studio Meta-K, Elevado, Gennie, Staircase, Acme
Join CapCut and creators from the CapCut Creative Partner Program for a hands-on workshop exploring how AI is changing the creative process for filmmakers, storytellers, and content creators. Attendees will get an inside look at how creators use CapCut Video Studio to rapidly turn ideas into AI-powered videos, short films, and visual concepts — from prompt to final output. The session will feature creator showcases, live demos, workflow breakdowns, and an interactive creation experience where attendees can experiment with AI video tools in real time. Whether you are a filmmaker, artist, creator, or simply curious about AI storytelling, this workshop is designed to inspire fast, experimental, and accessible creation. Participants are encouraged to bring their own laptops to create alongside the workshop.
Artificial intelligence is no longer just sci-fi; it's enabling a new realm of capabilities in studio production. Moderated by Google Cloud's Ranjit Raju, this session features a heavyweight lineup including Jon Flynn (Fox), Rob Fox (AMC), Greg Brentin (Paramount), and Jagan Cuddapah (Google) as they discuss the future of AI in content production. The conversation will dive into how studios are leveraging AI to streamline operations and unlock unprecedented creative potential. Join us to see exactly how these industry titans are building the studio of the future.
Have you ever wanted to tell an effective visual story in 30 seconds or less, with no dialogue? Follow award-winning AI storyteller Jagger Waters as she walks you through crafting powerful, grounded narratives that can advance your career. Using Dreamina’s groundbreaking Seedance 2.0 model, you'll learn how to blend cutting-edge tech with the timeless art of storytelling.
A general overview for the audience about the state-of-the-art in video models and trends in industry adoption. CEOs and founders of major AI video companies discuss where video models currently excel, where they lack, how they improved over the last year, and the likely improvements we'll see in the next year.
AI is rewriting how content is marketed, distributed and monetized. That's because your audience is much larger than you think. As algorithms largely control audience discovery and the pathway to scale, creators are jockeying for attention in feeds. Success no longer hinges on creativity alone, but also on understanding how to reach the right audience, in the right place, at the right time… and converting attention into value. This session explains how AI is reshaping the discovery and distribution of social video, and how creators and brands are successfully building the systems to take control of their audience and IP.
Amazon MGM Studios and AWS are building new filmmaking tools where human creativity leads and AI supports. Join the team behind the work—and filmmakers already using it—for a first look at what's possible when cloud infrastructure meets creative ambition.
A screening and judging of AI on the Lot's flagship 48-hour filmmaking competition, Cinema Synthetica. Nine hand-selected artists poised to break out in 2026 present films created over a high-stakes, 48-hour weekend in Venice, CA. A panel of judges will select a winner.
Step inside a first look at the next generation of video-to-video modification purpose-built for the demands of cinematic production. What was once a creative novelty is becoming a serious instrument for VFX, previz, post, and final-pixel production. In this workshop, we'll preview an unreleased model class that handles motion capture and performance retargeting, object replacement and removal, background painting, compositing, atmospherics, and relighting from a single generative surface with the pose accuracy and control filmmakers actually need on a shot.
A look into how AI turns fans into creators and marketing engines who make content inside story worlds. While the demand for fan-generated content is clear, many questions still linger around the economics, IP dilution, and official studio position. These questions boil down into a single question: what technology is required for studios and IP holders to engage in this new frontier? Attendees will leave with a understanding of the landscape and new technology in the fandom space.
Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios’ Tech and Product leaders share how they are using AI to build a more intuitive, personalized, and accessible viewing experience. From re-imagining how audiences find and engage with content to enhancing live sports, discover how AI is changing the way customers interact with Prime Video.
Close out Day 1 with the official AI on the Lot VIP Happy Hour at the Culver Hotel, an intimate invite-only experience featuring curated drinks, cocktails, and bites alongside leading founders, executives, investors, artists, and technologists working across AI and entertainment. Note: This session is reserved for VIP and Speaker passholders only. Government-issued ID and an eligible event pass are required for entry. The guest list will be strictly enforced.
PJ Ace will plug in his laptop, take questions, and walk through whatever the audience wants to explore for 45 minutes. This Master's Seminar is an open-floor session with one of the best AI filmmakers in the world.
Close out Day 1 with the official AI on the Lot happy hour inside Stage 15. Attendees are invited to enjoy drinks, music, and a one-of-a-kind interactive art experience built by Flora, rendered live on one of the largest digital canvases in the world. Olive Kimoto is a Los Angeles-based musician, DJ, and cofounder. She is a resident on NTS Radio and KCRW 89.9FM, and sings in the band Locust. For AI on the Lot, she brings a DJ set drifting between electro, electronica, and future-facing club sounds.
After AI on the Lot Day #1, Cantina is taking over Jameson's with free food, free drinks, and great music. Stroll a hundred feet down from the Culver Hotel (you don't even need to cross a street) and enjoy the official AI on the Lot after hours with the other night owls. This one's going late. The entire venue is only open to ticketed AI on the Lot attendees. Jameson's address: 9546 Washington Blvd.