Tickets Now on Sale | AI Film Festival Japan 2026

The official program and timetable for the "2nd AI Film Festival Japan 2026" have been announced.

Program & Speakers

TIMETABLE

Official Festival Schedule & Speaker Lineup for AIFJ 2026

Main Stage (2F)

DAY 1: Opening & Official Screenings

10:30 Doors Open & Check-in

11:00

AIFJ 2026 Opening Ceremony

11:05

Kids Program Screening (Selected family-friendly AI films)

11:45

Finalist Highlight Screening

12:00

Panel 1: "How AI Transforms Filmmaking — Insights from the Jury"

Harry Hyun (Lead Director, MooAm / AIFJ International Jury) Toby Hyder (Founder, XOLink / AIFJ International Jury)

12:45

Program A (Nominated & Finalist Screenings)

13:45

Program B (Nominated & Finalist Screenings)

15:00

Panel 2: "AI & Entertainment: Shaping Regional Futures"

Chikara Ito (Film Producer / Regional Revitalization) Kenichi Watanabe (Cabinet Office Cool Japan Producer / Value Designer)

15:50

Program C (Nominated & Finalist Screenings)

16:40

Program D (Nominated & Finalist Screenings)

17:45

Panel 3: "Creator Perspectives on the Latest AI Works"

Norihiko (CEO, Benevo / CCO, aicrew) AI-sama no Geboku (AI Creator / YouTuber)

18:15

Opening Night (Networking Reception) / Program E Screening

19:05

Program F (Nominated & Finalist Screenings)

20:00 DAY 1 Program Concluded

1F Parallel Tracks

DAY 2: Industry & Creator Parallel Programs

10:00 Doors Open & Check-in

SQUARE-2 (Industry Program)

10:30Opening

10:35 - 11:15 Session 1: "Nurturing Japanese Intellectual Property (IP)"

Makoto Kimura (CEO, BLUE RIGHTS / Anime & IP Producer)

Motoyuki Suzuki (Former Senior Managing Director, HoriPro)

11:15 - 12:00 Session 2: "How AI Redefines Music"

Yukihiro Osawa (Chairman, Kirin AI / Special Advisor, Dolby Japan)

12:00Networking Break

12:30 - 13:15 Session 3: "Global Growth of Japanese Anime & IP: Barriers & Breakthroughs"

Makoto Kimura (CEO, BLUE RIGHTS)

Rina Takei (CEO, Chammi)

Masanao Takahashi (Expert, TBS Television Animation/Film/Events)

13:15 - 14:00 Session 4: "Navigating International Co-productions"

Dr. Charles Lee (Founder & CEO, imCore Corp. / TWR Entertainment)

Gary Mundell (Co-founder & CEO, LOFTAPPS / Producer, Tippett Film)

14:00 - 14:45 Session 5: "Taiwanese Filmmaking in the AI Era"

Kevin Lin (Co-founder, Twitch) & Taiwan Delegation

Main Event ★ AIFJ 2026 Awards Ceremony (SQUARE-2 Joint Event)

Grand Prix, Category Awards & Sponsored Awards (CapCut, ElevenLabs) Announcements

16:30 - 17:00 Session 6: "Timo Ramu"

Timo Ramu (Filmmaker & Animator / Cannes Lions Gold Winner)

17:00 - 17:45 Session 7: "How AI Reshapes the Global Market"

Yuki Shirato (Managing Director, Techstars Japan)

Yoshimitsu Kaji (Chairman & CSDO, Cinnamon AI / Senior Principal, Hitachi)

Oi Rice (Founder & CEO, Kirin AI)

18:00 - 18:30 Industry Pitch

Masao Kawano (Tsucrea / TCIC) & VC / Investor Panel

18:30Industry Night (Networking Reception)

20:00 DAY 2 Concluded

SQUARE-1 (Creator Program)

10:30Opening

10:35 - 11:15 Music Program Screening (AI Music Score / SIO Vocal Track Nominees)

11:15Program G (Nominated & Finalist Screenings)

12:15Program H (Nominated & Finalist Screenings)

13:10Program I (Nominated & Finalist Screenings)

14:00 - 14:50 CapCut AI Creative Award Program (Screening Nominated Works)

15:00 - 16:30Join Awards Ceremony (Transfer to SQUARE-2)

16:30Winner Press & Media Interview

17:00 - 18:00 Creator Demo

John Wang (Film Producer / Co-founder, Atelier 452 Ltd.)

18:30Industry Night (Joint Networking Reception)

20:00 DAY 2 Concluded

1F Parallel Tracks

DAY 3: Conference, Creator Demos & Closing

10:00 Doors Open & Check-in

SQUARE-2 (Industry Program)

10:30 - 11:10 Session 8: "The Future of Human-AI Entertainment"

Yoshimitsu Kaji (Chairman & CSDO, Cinnamon AI)

Kenichi Watanabe (Cabinet Office Cool Japan Producer)

11:10 - 11:50 Session 9: "Phil Tippett (Online Keynote)"

Phil Tippett (Oscar-winning Director / Founder, Tippett Studio)

Gary Mundell (Co-founder & CEO, LOFTAPPS / Producer, Tippett Film)

11:50 - 12:30 Session 10: "Japanese Entertainment in the AI Era: What to Protect & What to Evolve"

Masayoshi Sakai (GLOCOM / METI)

Masahiro Aida (Cinematographer, TV Drama "Aibou")

12:30Networking Break

13:00 - 13:50 Session 11: "AI Implementation in Broadcast & Television Production"

Masanao Takahashi (Expert, TBS Television)

Yasuho Honda (Producer, AX-ON / NOKI AI Studio)

14:00 - 14:50 Session 12: "The Evolutionary Trajectory of Anime"

Makoto Kimura (CEO, BLUE RIGHTS)

Kenjiro Akai (Producer, CyberAgent)

15:00 - 15:50 Session 13: "Protecting Creativity in the AI Age: Legal & Rights Perspectives"

Yuta Ujiie (Attorney at Law / Partner, Aoyama Sogo Law Office)

16:00 - 16:50 Industry Pitch Startup & Enterprise AI Solutions Showcase

17:00 - 17:50 Session 14: "Artisan Value & Authorship in the AI Era"

Masahiro Aida (Cinematographer, "Aibou")

Alexander KOAN Mitchell (Art Producer / Curator)

18:00Closing Party (Reception)

19:30 DAY 3 Concluded

SQUARE-1 (Creator Program)

10:30Special Screening (Films by Simone Sighinolfi)

10:40 - 11:30 Creator Demo & Talk

Norihiko × AI-sama no Geboku

11:40 - 12:10 Creator Demo

Kazumi Kitazawa (CafeGroup Head of VFX / AI Creative Director)

12:10Special Screening (Films by Hoda Fallah)

12:30 - 13:00 Creator Demo

CyberAgent Creative Team

13:00 - 14:15 Creator Demo: "Kaiki! Shiniku no Otoko"

Director Tsuyoshi Sone

14:30 - 15:15 Creator Demo: "LET THERE BE LIGHT"

Director Hirona Takahashi

15:30 - 17:30 Award-Winning Works Screening (with Stage Greetings) Official screenings of winners with creator Q&A on stage

18:00Closing Party (Joint Reception)

19:30 DAY 3 Concluded

Get Festival Tickets (Luma)

Festival Highlights

Oct 31 (Sat)

Screening / Panel Discussions

Screenings of selected AIFJ 2026 works from around the world.

Nov 1 (Sun)

Awards Ceremony

Announcement of AIFJ 2026 Awards and Sponsored Special Awards. (Including CapCut, ElevenLabs, etc.)

Nov 1 - Nov 2

Business Conference / Industry Program

Discussions on Gen-AI implementation, production, IP, rights, and business applications.

Join the Next Horizon of Cinema

For our 2nd edition, we aim to welcome 2,000 attendees, creating an environment where creators and industry professionals meet.

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