AI Cinema Festival network · Ottawa edition · Guide

How to enter the AI Cinema Festival in Ottawa.Hybrid or fully AI. Seventeen days left.

The rules, the three tracks and the 17 awards of the Ottawa edition, with a plan to the 18 October 2026 deadline. Write the screenplay, storyboard it, and film it with Seedance inside ScreenWeaver.
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  • Deadline 18 October 2026
  • Hybrid and fully AI welcome
  • Event 13 to 15 November
Voidborn · Episode 0

Independent guide. ScreenWeaver does not organise the AI Cinema Festival and is not affiliated with its network or its city editions. Rules read on 1 October 2026. Ottawa edition site

Available today in ScreenWeaver: free screenwriting, and a storyboard generated from your screenplay with Storyboard Beta, $9.99 a month.

Rolling out: video generation of each shot, powered by Seedance, with the Filmmaker plan.

The Ottawa edition in brief

What this edition asks for.

AI Cinema Festival is a network of city editions that share one name and one hub site. This page covers the Ottawa edition, the one closing first. It accepts hybrid and fully AI films, and its rules fit on one screen.
Edition
Ottawa, the Canadian edition of the network
Deadline
18 October 2026
Event
13 to 15 November 2026, DoubleTree by Hilton Ottawa Downtown
Works accepted
Hybrid human + AI films and fully AI-generated films
Awards
17, from the Grand Prix Canada to craft and ethics prizes
AI rule
Disclose the main AI tools and workflows you used
Language and premiere
English or French subtitles for other languages. No premiere needed
Fee, length, file format
Not published on the pages read

Source: the home, rules, submissions, awards and jury pages of the Ottawa edition site, read on 1 October 2026. Fees, running times and file specs are not published there: write to canadian@aicinemafestival.com before you pay or render.

Key dates

Seventeen days, then a bigger calendar.

The Ottawa site says submissions are open now. Count back from the 18th, and know that <b>the same network has later deadlines</b> if this one is too tight.

  1. Now

    Submissions open

    The form takes a private screening link and its password, your AI tools, your human roles, a runtime and a short synopsis.

  2. 18 Oct 2026

    Final deadline

    The site gives no hour and no time zone. Send on the 17th, not on the last evening.

  3. Late Oct 2026

    Selection and jury review

    The site schedules official selection and jury review for late October. It names no jurors.

  4. 13 to 15 Nov 2026

    The festival in Ottawa

    Screenings, conversations and awards at 33 Nicholas Street. The edition is bilingual, French first.

  5. 24 Jan 2027

    Next in Canada: Quebec City

    A sister edition with its own site: deadline 24 January, event 19 to 21 February 2027. New York follows, with a 20 June 2027 deadline and an event on 16 to 18 July.

How films are read

Five lenses, none of them weighted.

The Ottawa site says its lens is cinematic, not prompt spectacle. It lists what it looks at and publishes no weights and no scores. The five cards below group that list.

  • Point of view and story

    A film with something to say, told from somewhere. One character, one want and a complete idea beat a montage of fine images. Write it before you prompt it.

  • Image and light

    The Best AI Cinematography award names composition, light, camera language, shot continuity and control of the synthetic image. Hold one lens language and one light logic from first shot to last.

  • Sound and rhythm

    Sound and voice design, and the editing rhythm, each have their own award. Plan the track as carefully as the picture: a silent generated film is half a film.

  • Consent and responsibility

    Consent and responsibility are named in the review lens, and the Responsible AI Cinema Award rewards transparent, rights-aware work. Your tools list and your rights are part of the entry.

  • Emotional impact and the room

    The Audience Signal Award goes to the work with the clearest pulse in the room. Think of a screening in a hotel ballroom, not a feed.

Selected films can be considered for several award categories, so one strong film can compete on direction, image, sound and ethics at once.

Who decides

A profile, not a list of names.

The Ottawa edition does not name its jury. It describes who sits on it and says who does not choose. Four things to know.

  • No names published

    The Jury and Partners page describes film professionals, producers, editors, VFX and animation voices, sound artists, technologists and cultural leaders. It gives no names and no headcount.

  • Selection comes first

    Official selection and jury review are scheduled for late October. The festival speaks of human selection and of taste, so a film must read on first viewing without a long explanation.

  • The room votes too

    The Audience Signal Award is chosen for the work that travels through the room with the clearest audience pulse. It rewards clarity and emotion more than technique.

  • Partners do not pick

    The network's methodology page says commercial partners may support operations but cannot determine selections, jury decisions or award rationales. That is a stated principle, not something we can verify.

The tracks

Three tracks, eight form categories.

The site has three official tracks, and the submission form adds more specific categories. Four choices matter most to a ScreenWeaver filmmaker, with the angle we would take.

  • 01

    Human + AI Cinema

    Works where direction, editing, performance, design, voice or other human production choices guide AI tools toward cinema.

    The safest track if you write, direct and edit yourself. List your human roles on the form: screenplay, storyboard, edit, voice, music.

  • 02

    Full AI Film

    Works primarily generated through AI systems, reviewed for coherence, craft control, authorship and the final screen experience.

    Fully generated is welcome here, but authorship is still judged. Craft control means one coherent film, not a string of impressive clips.

  • 03

    AI Short Film

    A category on the form for short-form work. The site gives no running time, so ask the organisers what counts as short.

    With 17 days, a film of two to four minutes is realistic. A complete small idea beats an unfinished big one.

  • 04

    Future Format

    Vertical, immersive, interactive, micro-short, trailer, fashion film, music video, XR and experimental forms.

    A vertical short drama or a trailer is a legitimate entry. Say why the format serves the story, not only that it is new.

From script to screen

Voidborn: a scene shot for the lens.

Ottawa has an award for AI cinematography, one for editing and rhythm, and one for worldbuilding. This is a scene from Voidborn, episode 0, an anime by the ScreenWeaver team: the screenplay page, then each shot as a storyboard frame and as the final image, with the same swordsman, the same ruins and the same light across the cuts.

Logline. Every seven years, the Rift opens and swallows the world’s dreams. A swordsman sworn to a blind seer escorts her through its levels, toward a promise they made to a girl left behind.

Screenplay · episode 0 · English subtitles

EXT. RUINS OF THE FIRST LEVEL - NIGHT

Broken towers under a violet sky. SIM, a swordsman in a black cloak, walks beside LADY MARIA, blindfolded, all in white.

SIM

Tell me, Maria... do you think Leia believes we are still alive?

MARIA

We made a promise... the two of us.

A line of white automatons rises from the ruins.

AUTOMATON

The Rift will wait for no one.

SIM

What are machines doing at this level?

One automaton steps forward. Its face is blank.

AUTOMATON

We must return to the surface.

Its eyes ignite red.

SIM

I am Sim, guardian of Lady Maria... and I will proceed with your execution.

Steel meets steel. Lightning runs down the blade.

CUT TO:

  1. A swordsman in a black cloak and a blindfolded woman in white walk through ruins at night
    Storyboard frame of the wide shot, in grey
    01

    Wide · the pair

    Wide shot, a bald swordsman in a black cloak and a blindfolded red-haired woman in white walk through night ruins

  2. Medium two-shot of a bald swordsman and a blindfolded red-haired woman
    Storyboard frame of the two-shot, in grey
    02

    Two-shot · the promise

    Medium two-shot, the swordsman and the blindfolded seer side by side, violet night sky, broken towers

  3. Three white humanoid automatons stand in night ruins
    Storyboard frame of the automatons shot, in grey
    03

    Wide · the machines

    Wide low angle, three white humanoid automatons standing in the ruins, cold blue moonlight

  4. Close-up of a white automaton with a smooth blank face
    Storyboard frame of the blank face close-up, in grey
    04

    Close-up · the blank face

    Close-up on an automaton's smooth faceless head, black eye slots, cables at the neck, ruins behind

  5. A white automaton's eyes glow red
    Storyboard frame of the red eyes close-up, in grey
    05

    Close-up · the red eyes

    Same framing, the automaton's eyes ignite red, the swordsman's shoulder out of focus in the foreground

  6. A swordsman strikes with a katana wreathed in lightning and sparks
    Storyboard frame of the clash shot, in grey
    06

    Action · the clash

    Dynamic low angle, the swordsman strikes with his katana, lightning running along the blade, sparks, cape flying

Voidborn, episode 0 is 13 minutes long. For a short track, a three minute cut built on one sequence like this is the film to send. The ScreenWeaver team made it, and it won 1st Place Silver and 2nd Place Dreamina at the Mondial Chroma Awards, and an award at the Seoul International AI Film Festival. Press play to land on the ruins, about 7 minutes in.

The script

Five movements in five minutes.

The site sets no running time, so choose one you can finish. Five minutes holds about 5 screenplay pages and 50 to 75 shots of 4 to 6 seconds. Under 17 days, aim for three.

  1. 0:00 to 0:30

    The cold open

    A face, a place, a problem. The selection team sees many films: begin inside the story.

  2. 0:30 to 1:30

    The signal

    Introduce the hero and the desire. Set the visual rule and the sound rule of the film.

  3. 1:30 to 3:30

    The pressure

    Each scene costs more. Give one scene to image and sound only.

  4. 3:30 to 4:30

    The decision

    The character chooses, and the choice shows. This is the shot people remember.

  5. 4:30 to 5:00

    The echo

    An image that answers the first one, then the credits and your AI statement.

Keep the credits short. List the tools and the human roles exactly as they appear on your form, so the screening and the form tell the same story.

Day by day

From the blank page to the form.

Seventeen days from 1 October. The film is made in the middle. If it will not fit, aim at the Quebec City edition and the same plan gets 16 weeks.
  1. 01

    1 to 3 October

    Track and idea

    Choose Human + AI, Full AI or Short Film. Write ten loglines and keep the one with two characters and one place.

  2. 02

    4 to 6 October

    The screenplay

    Two to four pages, mostly images, little dialogue. Write it free in ScreenWeaver and read it aloud.

  3. 03

    7 to 9 October

    References and storyboard

    One approved reference per character and per set. Generate the shot breakdown and storyboard, then adjust framing and duration shot by shot.

  4. 04

    10 to 14 October

    Generate the footage

    Generate scene by scene with Seedance, working from your storyboard and your references. Keep every prompt and every version: your AI statement comes from them.

  5. 05

    15 to 16 October

    Edit, sound and subtitles

    Cut, mix, add English or French subtitles if the dialogue needs them, and export a clean file with a working private link.

  6. 06

    17 to 18 October

    Submit

    Fill in the form with your tools, your human roles and your rights confirmation. Check the screening link in a private window before you press send.

Mistakes to avoid

Eight ways the entry goes wrong.

The rules page has seven short lines. The traps are in what is not written down, and in a form that asks for more than the rules say.

  • An AI list that is vague

    Creators must disclose the main AI tools and workflows. The form has a field for tools and another for human roles. Fill both with names and tasks, not with the word “AI”.

  • Rights nobody can prove

    Submitters must hold the rights, permissions and consents for music, images, voices, performances and likenesses. No real person's face or voice without consent, and no unlicensed track.

  • AI that is not meaningful

    The rules want AI to be a meaningful part of the creative process. A film with a token generated shot is not what the festival describes.

  • No subtitles

    Works that are not in English or French should carry English or French subtitles. Burn them in or attach them to the screening file.

  • A dead screening link

    The form asks for a private link and its password. A link that expires before late October ends the entry quietly.

  • Guessing the fee and the format

    No fee, runtime or file spec is published on the pages we read. Ask canadian@aicinemafestival.com in writing and keep the answer.

  • Mixed signals between pages

    The awards page is headed Ottawa 2027, the French listing page shows a February 2027 date, and the hub directory of 52 editions does not list Ottawa. The Ottawa site itself gives 13 to 15 November 2026: confirm with the organisers.

  • Reading a hub claim as a promise

    The hub speaks of 51 city editions and a World Final. Judge the Ottawa edition on its own page, and treat network-wide numbers as the organiser's own description.

Why ScreenWeaver

A festival of authorship. A tool built around it.

The Ottawa edition asks who has the taste and the precision to turn tools into cinema. ScreenWeaver puts screenplay, storyboard and footage in one connected project, so the author's choices stay visible.

  • Your human roles, documented

    The form asks for tools and human roles. In ScreenWeaver, each shot traces back to its scene, its storyboard frame and its prompt, so the answer comes from the project.

  • Seedance 2.0 and 2.5 under the hood

    The festival imposes no tool. ScreenWeaver's footage runs on Seedance, and you may mix other sources if you list them all.

  • One look for the whole film

    The same hero, the same set and the same references from one shot to the next. Cinematography, the first thing this edition names, depends on shots that match.

  • Start for free today

    Start on the Screenwriter plan, $0 with no expiry. Add Storyboard Beta at $9.99 a month. Video generation arrives with the Filmmaker plan, now rolling out.

Real productions

International festival-recognized films have been written and produced with ScreenWeaver.

ScreenWeaver is already being used as a creative workspace for real AI film productions, from cinematic shorts to animated series pilots selected, nominated, and awarded by international festivals.

  • Video thumbnail for VOIDBORN

    VOIDBORN

    AI animated / cinematic short

    Festival recognition

    • 1st Place Silver

      Mondial Chroma Awards

    • 2nd Place Dreamina

      Mondial Chroma Awards

    • Award Winner

      Seoul International AI Film Festival

  • Video thumbnail for Les Fils du Vinnana

    Les Fils du Vinnana

    AI short film

    Festival recognition

    • Honorable Mention

      Top Quark Film Festival

    • People's Choice Nominee

      Illuminate Oneness of Humanity

    • Nominee

      ALTFF Supershort

  • Video thumbnail for Lost Garden

    Lost Garden

    AI animated series pilot

    Festival recognition

    • Finalist

      AI London Festival

See what creators are building

The pipeline

Write. Board. Produce.

  1. ScreenWeaver screenplay editor: acts, sequences and beats above the formatted script of The Yellow Umbrella

    01The screenplay, enriched

    An industry-standard screenplay editor, and more: a visual outline and beat editor, your writing inspirations (notes, photos, audio) kept next to the page, and an AI researcher to support your writing, not replace it.

  2. ScreenWeaver storyboard: shot S3 of The Yellow Umbrella with characters, shot settings and the script beside it

    02The storyboard, made easy

    Shot breakdown generated from your screenplay, manual control over every shot (frame, angle, movement, duration), and generative AI previsualization in one click.

  3. ScreenWeaver production canvas: shots S3 and S4 as connected nodes carrying their storyboard panels and prompts

    03AI production, with finesse

    Footage generation pipelines connected to your screenplay and storyboard. Optimized out of the box, fully editable workflow.

More AI film festivals

Guides for other festivals

Go further

Guides for festival films

FAQ

AI Cinema Festival Ottawa, your questions

How do you win the AI Cinema Festival in Ottawa?
The site publishes no weights. Films are read for point of view, image, sound, editing, story, consent, responsibility and emotional impact. One clear idea, one held look and an honest AI statement cover most of it.
When is the Ottawa deadline?
18 October 2026, according to the Ottawa edition site. The festival runs 13 to 15 November 2026 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Ottawa Downtown.
Are fully AI-generated films accepted?
Yes. The rules say hybrid human-AI and fully AI-generated works are welcome. Creators must disclose the main AI tools and workflows.
What does the Ottawa edition charge?
The pages we read do not publish a fee. Ask canadian@aicinemafestival.com before you submit, and keep the reply.
How long can the film be?
No running time is published. The form asks for a runtime and offers an AI Short Film category. Ask the organisers what they count as short.
Is the AI Cinema Festival one festival or many?
A network of city editions under one name, each with its own site, dates and deadline. The Ottawa edition closes first. Quebec City follows on 24 January 2027 and New York on 20 June 2027.
Can ScreenWeaver make a film that qualifies?
Yes, since no tool is imposed. The footage pipelines run on Seedance 2.0 and 2.5. Declare ScreenWeaver and the Seedance version among your tools.
Does a film have to be a world premiere?
No. The Ottawa rules say premiere status is not required.

Seventeen days. Open the page.

Write the screenplay free today. Storyboard it, then film it with Seedance.
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