The AI Movie Awards (AIMA) gave Best Feature at their London edition to The Trials Beyond The Loop, directed by Hal Watmough, and Best Short to Robert Gaudette's A Face Only A Mother Could Love. The ceremony took place on 8 November 2026 at the Institution of Engineering and Technology, Savoy Place. Twelve films won across eleven categories.
The winners come from the press release that AIMA and its partner James Drake Media issued on 11 November 2026. We read it as reprinted by London TV on 12 November. We also read the official AIMA site the same day. It now shows "AIMA London 2026: It's a wrap!" with twelve winner photos, but it does not print the names as text. We have not seen the films.
The full list of winners
| Category | Film | Director |
|---|---|---|
| Best Feature | The Trials Beyond The Loop | Hal Watmough |
| Best Short | A Face Only A Mother Could Love | Robert Gaudette |
| Best Animation | The Gift | Junho Her |
| Best Drama | Henry | Emanuele Riccetti |
| Best Fantasy | Elara & The Ash King | Marcus Grip |
| Best Thriller | Maria Maria | Alex Marco |
| Best Thriller | The One Who Watches | Leighanne Fernandes |
| Best Cultural Heritage | The Finding | Vincenzo Lo Re |
| Best Diversity & Inclusion | When You Run From Your Mum | Edmond Yang |
| Best Sci-Fi | They Came When We Left | Justinas Vosylius |
| Best Music Video | Oasis | Glen Jacques Park |
| Best Ad | Most Ideas Die in Notebooks | Julien Paolini |
The press release describes The Trials Beyond The Loop as a 33-minute science fiction film directed by Hal Watmough, a BAFTA-winning editor, and produced by London's Wonder Studios. It is the first film of season 2 of Beyond the Loop, the studio's AI-native anthology series. Calling it Best Feature is the festival's choice: at 33 minutes it sits between a short and a feature. A Face Only A Mother Could Love was, in the release's words, "created entirely using generative AI".
The jury named in the release included Hollywood producers David Barron and Tommy Harper, Oscar-winning visual effects artist John Gaeta, VFX and AI supervisor Stuart Cripps and Grammy-nominated musician Fab Morvan. Federico Luglio, director of the AI Movie Awards, said the films "demonstrate just how far AI filmmaking has come". No cash prize is mentioned. The AIMA site promises winners a trophy, a certificate, partner prizes and a distribution offer.
One short, three top prizes
The most interesting line in the list is Best Short. Gaudette's film, the story of Marcel, a solitary Parisian dancer with a facial disfigurement, already won the Grand Prix at Runway's AI Film Festival and first place at the Reply AI Film Festival in Venice this year. London makes it three.
That says something about what juries reward. Three different panels, one run by a tool maker, one by a tech consultancy and one by an independent awards body, landed on the same 7 minute 50 short. It is not the flashiest film of the year. It has one character, a clear wound and an ending that pays off. If you are planning an entry for next season, that is the bar: a story people remember, made with AI, not a reel of what the model can do.
It also shows that a winning film can keep travelling. A short that won in Venice could still enter London. Before you do the same, check each festival's premiere rules, since some still require a world or national premiere. Our guide on where to publish an AI film explains the order that keeps your options open.
Read the numbers with care
The two official sources do not agree. The press release speaks of more than 500 submissions from 57 countries, 30 finalists and 300 guests. The AIMA homepage shows 1,178 submissions, 312 guests and 16 awards. The release also names categories that the site did not list before the event (Best Feature, Best Thriller), and skips some it did (Best Documentary, Best Vertical Short, Best Art, Best Music). We do not know which figure is right, so treat both as the organisers' own claims.
The edition count is muddled too. The release's headline says "first London edition" while its text says "second edition". Both are true: the first AIMA was held in Magaluf, Mallorca, and this was the first one in London.
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Start FreeWhat comes next
The AIMA site already announces the next edition: AI Movie Awards Magaluf 2027, on 26 and 27 March 2027 at the Melià South Beach in Mallorca. The submission dates were not published when we read the page. Our AIMA London guide covers the rules, the specs and how the jury picks finalists, and we will update it when the Magaluf call opens.
For the other calls still open this winter, with deadlines and prizes, see our AI film festivals hub and the AI film festivals guide for 2026.
What it means if you work in ScreenWeaver
A film like Gaudette's wins on character, and character is what AI video loses first: a face that changes between shots breaks the story faster than any weak effect. ScreenWeaver keeps one reference sheet per character and per place, and every shot cites them, so the face in shot 40 is the face in shot 1. Our guide to character drift in AI video shows what breaks first, and the storyboard-first workflow shows the order we use to avoid it.
Checklist before your next AI festival entry
- Write a one-line premise built on a character, not on a technique.
- Lock the script and the storyboard before you generate a single shot.
- Build one reference sheet per recurring character and place.
- Watch the finished cut for face and costume drift, scene by scene.
- Read each festival's premiere rule before posting your film anywhere public.
- Note which categories exist this year: they change between editions.
- Keep a short production note on the tools you used. Juries and press ask.
FAQ
Who won Best Feature at AIMA London 2026? The Trials Beyond The Loop, a 33-minute science fiction film directed by Hal Watmough and produced by Wonder Studios, according to the press release of 11 November 2026.
Who won Best Short at AIMA London 2026? A Face Only A Mother Could Love by Robert Gaudette. The same film won the Grand Prix at Runway's AI Film Festival and first place at the Reply AI Film Festival in 2026.
When and where was the ceremony? On 8 November 2026 at the Institution of Engineering and Technology, Savoy Place, London, organised by the AI Movie Awards with James Drake Media.
How many films entered AIMA London? The press release says more than 500 submissions from 57 countries and 30 finalists. The AIMA website shows 1,178 submissions. The two figures do not match, and we could not confirm either.
Is there a cash prize at the AI Movie Awards? No cash amount is published. The AIMA site lists a trophy, a certificate, prizes from partners and a distribution offer for winners.
When is the next AI Movie Awards? The AIMA site announces AI Movie Awards Magaluf 2027 for 26 and 27 March 2027 at the Melià South Beach in Mallorca. Submission dates were not published when we checked on 12 November 2026.
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