A 48-hour cinematic hackathon · chapters in
Cinema meets code. Filmmakers pair with AI engineers, two tracks, one theme, 48 hours on the clock — every team ships a film or tool, the winners play at the festival. Debuted at the BFI in October 2025; the circuit runs across London, Cannes and New York through 2026.
A series of events that challenge what filmmaking can be.
Thank you to our amazing Cannes sponsors. Sponsor the next event →
Created with the help of AI in just 48 hours, these 14 standout shorts showcase the next wave of filmmaking — where cinema, creativity and technology collide. Jury picks were crowned at the Cinéum Cannes matinée on Mon 18 May. Voting for the audience prize is open Fri 22 → Fri 29 May (7 days) — winner announced online once voting closes.
The jury called it live at the Cinéum Cannes matinée on Mon 18 May. The Film Track podium — every winner took home a Panalux Award too.
Best Sound · STRT
Best Post · The Last Pip + STRT
Pre-Production · Into the Unknown + Floor 67
Tech Track 1st salt · Takeshi Miki · 2nd rushes
1st Slow Lights · 2nd A Door Into the Dark
Multimodal · 1st The Last Pip · 2nd No I Like It
Filmmakers bring craft. AI developers bring capability. Team up at a meetup, bring your own team, or enter solo — in London or remotely. One theme, 48 hours, one short film.
The Builder Hack ships a tool. The Filmmaker Hack ships a film. Builders and filmmakers are welcome to enter either — pair up across disciplines or run solo. The strongest teams mix both.
Ship something cinematic with the newest creative AI — image, video, audio, agentic tools. Builders and filmmakers both welcome: engineers bring the stack, filmmakers bring story instinct on what the industry actually needs. Mixed teams are encouraged.
Develop, storyboard, shoot and cut a short film in a weekend. One theme, revealed live. Builders and filmmakers both welcome: filmmakers bring craft, builders bring tooling that pushes what's possible on screen. Mentor surgeries throughout.
Both tracks land at the Big Screen Hack × RecDek House Villa Party — our own party at a private villa in Cannes, co-hosted with several partners on Sun 17 May 2026, eve of the Cinéum festival matinée. Doors open in the evening for an after-party of up to 400 guests. More about the villa →
Every film from Big Screen Hack London on the big screen, one night. Winners announced live from the stage — track prizes, audience prize, and the Grand Prize. Then the party kicks off. Filmmakers, AI engineers, sponsors, jurors, press — all in one room.
Can't make the screening?
From 20+ films at the BFI to 58 submissions and a 500-strong weekend in Cannes. Next: Tribeca, 5–7 June 2026 — three tracks, one weekend, the circuit scaling again.
Two chapters shipped — BFI 2025 and Cannes 2026. Next stop: Tribeca, 5–7 June. Remote entries welcome from anywhere in the world.
Our first outing. 20+ films submitted, 4 prize winners, shown live on the BFI stage. The night that proved the format.
Watch the winners →Part one of the Cannes 2026 programme just wrapped. Two tracks ran side by side — Builder Hack + Filmmaker Hack. Every film that shipped is on the page.
Watch every film →Meet potential collaborators. Learn the sponsor tools hands-on. Form your team ahead of the weekend.
Register →Cannes festival week wrapped. The Villa Party on Sun 17, then the winners crowned live at the Cinéum matinée on Mon 18 — lilies took Best in Show.
See the winners →Brands & agencies pair with AI-native filmmakers to ship a cinematic brand film in 48 hours. Announced live from the Cinéum stage in May.
Event details →After Cannes we land in New York. Same two-track format, same 48 hours. Winning film screens during Tribeca Film Festival.
Event details →Twelve months on from the debut, we return to the BFI Southbank — this time as a satellite event during the London Film Festival.
Event details →The winning film gets a screening in Cannes during the Festival. Finalists and sponsors gather at our Cannes pre-party ahead of the screening.
Filmmakers meet developers to create one short film. Code meets cinema — by collaborating, both of you learn and produce work neither could make alone.
Filmmakers meet developers. Match at a meetup, bring your own team, or enter solo — we'll pair you on the day. Remote entries welcome from anywhere.
The Big Screen Hack: Cannes. A global competition with meet-ups in London in the run up to Cannes. 48 hours, the weekend before Cannes Film Festival. Theme revealed live. Bring what you know, learn what you don't.
Jury judges the films. £10,000 prize pool spread across Best Film, Best AI Use, Audience, Online Award and sponsor tracks. Grand Prize: screen in Cannes in May during the Festival.
The winning film from The Big Screen Hack: Cannes gets a screening in Cannes during the Festival. Finalists also join us at a Cannes pre-party alongside festival crowds.
Distributed across the above. Exact splits announced ahead of the weekend.
Track prizes + audience prize + Grand Prize, all on the night. Plus the party.
June 2026. Same format — filmmakers team up with AI developers, 48 hours, one short film. Winning film screens in New York during Tribeca Film Festival.
Type a one-line idea. We'll generate a cinematic AI poster — clean, no watermark — for The Big Screen Hack. Share it. Tease your friends. Find your team.
Open the prompt to your network: "Who'd want to make this with me?"
We'll keep you posted on the competition. One email, no spam.
