That’s a bit more apocalyptic than Fury Road.
Revered Australian director George Miller has been announced as Lead Juror for the the nascent OMNI International AI Generative Film Festival.
The festival, which launched in April with a preview event in Sydney, has events penciled in for Kyoto, Japan in August and Austin, Texas in September, and Melbourne at some unspecified point in the future. Mediaweek reports that the man behind the Mad Max and Happy Feet franchises (that’s range, baby) will be casting a critical eye over entries for the later October 2025 Omni 1.0 festival.
“Storytelling has always evolved with technology—from cave paintings to the camera to all sorts of digital technologies. And now we have AI,” Miller is quoted as saying. “The OMNI Festival is part of that evolution.”
The OMNI Festival was founded by Aryeh Sternberg and Travis Rice, with producers Marie-Celine Merret and Vinne Schifferstein on curatorial duties. Submissions are open via FilmFreeway.
“George Miller’s involvement is a signal to the creative community that AI filmmaking is not just an experiment—it’s an art form worthy of serious attention,” Schifferstein said. “This is a moment of cultural legitimacy.”
“Travis and Aryeh are building a space where legends like Miller can meet the next generation of creators – people reimagining the cinematic form in real time,” Merret added. “The October edition will be a landmark not just for the artists, but for how audiences experience AI cinema.”
Okay, then.
I’m not too surprised that a filmmaker of Miller’s interest and vintage would sign on to judge an AI film festival. He’s always had a keen interest in creative technologies, although not to the fetishistic level of, say, Robert Zemeckis. It’s no shock that he’d be keeping an eye on developments in AI filmmaking. Even noted AI doomsayer James Cameron is dabbling, and if anyone ought to be worried, it’s that guy.
As for the OMNI Film Festival, there’s not enough info to say. Their website is pretty scant – maybe it’s my failing eyes, but I can’t see a means to contact them. Also, they spelled “Michel Gondry” wrong. And grey text on a white background is certainly an interesting choice. And I can’t find a single thing about their announced Kyoto OMNI 0.5 event, which is concerning because according to them, it’s happening some time in the next 11 days.
So, I think the main take away here is that OMNI AI Film Festival exists more as a flurry of press releases than anything else at this stage, but it’s interesting that they’ve got Miller on board. Let’s see what develops next.
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