As of 9 November 2026 there is no single festival rule on AI: each festival writes its own, and they range from "yes, tell us how" to "not at all". The Berlinale's submission FAQ says it accepts films that used AI and may ask for more information. The Academy's rules for the 99th Oscars (posted 1 May 2026) require acting "demonstrably performed by humans with their consent" and human-authored screenplays. Cambridge Film Festival asks entrants to declare any significant AI use. Cinema St. Louis, according to St. Louis Public Radio, will stop showing films made with generative AI from 2027. Runway's AI Festival requires generative video. Read the rules of each festival you enter, on its own site, on the day you submit.
TL;DR
| Festival or body | What its own page says | Date we read it |
|---|---|---|
| Sundance Film Festival (2027) | No restrictions on AI use, but the rules require disclosure of "any usage or utilization of Artificial Intelligence"; failure to disclose "may result in the disqualification" | Rules and FAQ for the 2027 festival, checked 2026-11-09 |
| Berlinale | Accepts films that used AI; "you may be asked for additional information during the submission process" | FAQ for the 2027 festival, checked 2026-11-09 |
| Academy Awards (99th Oscars) | Acting "demonstrably performed by humans with their consent"; screenplays "must be human-authored"; may request information on generative AI use | Press release posted 2026-05-01 |
| Cambridge Film Festival | Declare "any significant use of AI"; no AI replicas of real people without consent; AI use is not judged more or less favourably | Policy page, checked 2026-11-09 |
| Okanagan Society of Independent Filmmaking (OSIF) | Assistive AI permitted; AI-generated actors, performances, dialogue, music, backgrounds and worldbuilding banned; disclosure form and on-screen slate | Policy effective 2025-12-15 |
| Cinema St. Louis | No films for which the filmmaker used generative AI, from its 2027 festivals (reported, not read on its site) | St. Louis Public Radio, 2026-09-08 |
| Runway AI Festival | Film track: 3 to 15 minutes, "Includes the use of generative video", "a fully contained, linear narrative" | Fourth annual edition page, checked 2026-11-09 |
Four kinds of rule, and how to tell which one you face
Reading the pages side by side, festival AI rules fall into four groups. The group decides how you plan the film, not only what you write on the form.
- Ask and accept. Sundance and the Berlinale are the clearest examples. Sundance's FAQ for 2027 says "We do not currently have any restrictions surrounding the usage of Artificial Intelligence technology. However, we do require the disclosure of any usage of Artificial Intelligence", and clause 24 of its rules makes it "the sole responsibility of the Applicant to disclose any usage or utilization of Artificial Intelligence (A.I.)", adding that failure to disclose "may result in the disqualification" of the project. The Berlinale allows AI use and may ask how it was used. Plan to answer in detail, shot by shot if needed.
- Allow the film, limit the categories. The Academy does not bar films that used generative AI, but it ties acting awards to human performers who consented and writing awards to human authors. A film can be eligible while a generated performance inside it is not.
- Allow assistance, ban generation. OSIF permits assistive AI and bans generated actors, dialogue, music, backgrounds and worldbuilding. Cinema St. Louis, as reported, will bar films whose maker used generative AI, defined as AI that "creates images or sound based on the user's text prompts". Here a generated establishing shot can disqualify the whole entry.
- Require it. AI festivals invert the question. Runway's AI Festival requires generative video in the film. A purely live-action film does not qualify there.
Two things are common to all four groups. Disclosure is expected whether or not it is required, and consent for real people is non-negotiable. Cambridge's policy says it will not accept films that "Use AI to replicate or simulate real individuals (living or deceased) without their explicit consent".
What the festivals actually define
The pages use different words for the same split, and it is worth matching your own vocabulary to theirs before you fill in a form.
- Generative. Cinema St. Louis, as reported, defines it by the prompt: AI that "creates images or sound based on the user's text prompts". Under that reading, an image-to-video model animating your own photograph is still generative, because it creates frames that were not shot.
- Assistive. OSIF's word. It covers limited, supportive use. Editing aids, noise reduction or a colour tool usually sit here, but the festival decides, not the tool's marketing.
- Significant. Cambridge asks for "significant" use to be declared and names AI visuals, dialogue, sound, simulated performances, and AI in scripting, editing or post-production. If you are unsure whether a use is significant, declare it.
- Human authorship. The Academy's frame. It looks at who wrote and who performed, and reserves the right "to request more information about the nature of the use and human authorship".
Storyboarding an entry on a board, and what that means for disclosure
Most of the AI in a festival short is not in the final picture. It is in the planning: a storyboard to pitch the film to a producer, a previz to block a scene, a mood frame for the colourist. Festivals that ban generated content in the film usually say nothing against generated planning material, but check: Cambridge lists AI "used in scripting" among the uses to declare.
On an 8frame board, a storyboard for a short is a few frames and a few nodes:
- A frame per sequence with sticky notes for the script lines and arrows for the order. The board has sticky notes in five colours, frames, shapes, text and arrows that stay attached; it has no tables, so a shot list lives in notes or in your own document.
- ShotGrid makes a 3x3 contact sheet, nine frames in one image, at 4K for 42 credits. It takes a prompt of up to 5,000 characters and 1 to 10 reference images, and the sheet is square (1:1). Nine panels from one prompt keep the look of a sequence together, which is what you want when you show a director the rhythm of a scene.
- Single frames with an image model when one panel needs work: Nano Banana 2 is 11 credits per image at 1K; Seedream 5 Lite is 6 and takes up to 14 reference images, so the location and the cast photos can ride along.
The storyboard templates on /workflows start a board with this structure. For the craft of the boards themselves, see how to storyboard a trailer and the best AI storyboard generators.
Keep the planning board after the shoot. If a festival asks how AI was used, a board that shows the generated storyboard next to the real frames that replaced it is the clearest answer you can give.
Mapping the rules to what you make on 8frame
| If the festival... | Planning on a board | Generated shots in the final film | What to keep for the form |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asks and accepts (Berlinale type) | Fine | Allowed; be ready to explain each one | A list of shots with the tool and model used |
| Limits categories (Academy type) | Fine | Allowed, but not as a performance you enter for acting | Who wrote the script; consent of every performer |
| Bans generation (OSIF, St. Louis type) | Usually fine; check scripting rules | Not allowed, including backgrounds and music | Proof the final picture and sound were shot or recorded |
| Requires it (Runway AI Festival type) | Fine | Required | A short note on which shots are generated |
On 8frame the models that make final shots include Kling v3 Standard (86 credits for 5 seconds with sound, needs a start image), Seedance 2.5 (157 for 5 seconds at 720p), Wan 3.0 (95 for 5 seconds at 1080p) and Hailuo H3 (88 for 5 seconds at 2K). No video model on 8frame outputs 4K and there is no video upscaler, so a festival that asks for a 4K DCP needs your own finishing pipeline for any generated shot. That is a technical fact worth knowing before you plan a generated scene into a feature.
Music is often forgotten. A festival that bans generated "music" (OSIF names it) also bans a generated score, even if every frame is shot. On 8frame, ElevenLabs Music, MiniMax Music and Lyria 2 are generative music tools; if your festival bans them, license or compose the score.
Writing the disclosure
A good disclosure is short, specific and checkable. Three parts:
- Where. Name the scenes or shots, with timecodes if the form allows.
- What. Generated picture, generated sound, AI-assisted edit, AI in the script. Use the festival's own categories where it has them.
- Who did the creative work. The script author, the performers and their consent, the editor.
For a film that used AI only in planning, say that: "AI image tools were used for the storyboard; no generated picture or sound is in the film." It is a sentence that costs nothing and removes a question from the selection committee. OSIF goes further and asks for an on-screen disclosure slate if AI appears in the final picture or sound; put it in the credits if your festival does not specify a place.
If someone recognisable appears in a generated shot, you need their consent, and Cambridge asks for the estate's consent for a deceased person. Generated faces that look like a real person are the riskiest material you can put in an entry. For the commercial side of the same question, see can you use AI video commercially.
What we could not confirm
Several articles say SXSW and Tribeca require AI disclosure in submissions. We could not find that wording on those festivals' own pages on 9 November 2026, so we do not repeat it here. (Sundance does have a written disclosure rule; see the table above.) Reports that Cannes barred generative AI films from its 2026 competition also come from secondary coverage only. Treat both as "check the festival's own rules", not as facts.
FAQ
Can I submit an AI-generated film to a festival?
To many, yes, and to some, no. Sundance accepts films that used AI and requires you to disclose it; the Berlinale accepts them and may ask for details. AI festivals such as Runway's require generative video. Others, such as OSIF, ban generated performances, music and backgrounds, and Cinema St. Louis is reported to bar generative AI from 2027. Read each festival's own page before you enter.
Do the Oscars allow films made with AI?
The 99th Oscars rules (posted 1 May 2026) make acting eligible only when "demonstrably performed by humans with their consent" and screenplays only when "human-authored". The Academy reserves the right to ask how generative AI was used. They do not say a film is barred because AI was used somewhere in it.
Do I have to disclose an AI storyboard?
Check the festival. Cambridge lists AI used in scripting among the uses to declare. Many festivals say nothing about planning material. A one-line note ("AI tools were used for the storyboard; no generated picture or sound is in the film") is safe everywhere.
What should an AI disclosure include?
Where AI was used (scenes or timecodes), what kind (picture, sound, script, edit) and who did the creative work, including consent of every performer. Use the festival's own categories where it gives them.
Can I use a generated likeness of a real actor?
Not without their consent, and festivals say so: Cambridge will not accept films that replicate real individuals without explicit consent, and asks for an estate's consent for a deceased person.
Sources
- Sundance Institute, 2027 Sundance Film Festival rules and regulations (clause 24: disclosure of any AI use, failure to disclose may result in disqualification) and submissions FAQ (question 12: no restrictions on AI use, disclosure required), checked 2026-11-09
- Berlinale, Film Submission FAQ ("Yes, we accept submissions that have used AI"; additional information may be requested; page refers to the 2027 festival), checked 2026-11-09
- Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Awards rules and campaign promotional regulations approved for 99th Oscars (posted 2026-05-01; human performance with consent; human-authored screenplays; right to request information), checked 2026-11-09
- Cambridge Film Festival, Policy on Artificial Intelligence (declare significant AI use; no replicas of real individuals without consent; not judged more or less favourably), checked 2026-11-09
- Okanagan Society of Independent Filmmaking, AI in Filmmaking Policy (effective 2025-12-15; assistive use permitted; generated actors, dialogue, music, backgrounds banned; disclosure form and slate), checked 2026-11-09
- St. Louis Public Radio, Cinema St. Louis limits the use of AI in festival films (2026-09-08; no generative AI films from its 2027 festivals; definition of generative AI), checked 2026-11-09
- Runway, AI Festival submission criteria (fourth annual edition; 3 to 15 minutes; generative video required; linear narrative), checked 2026-11-09
- 8frame prices, defaults and limits: the 8frame app, checked 2026-11-09
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