To Be Continued... See You Next Year! SIFF ING 2025 Concludes Successfully

On June 21, the awards ceremony of SIFF ING at the 27th Shanghai International Film Festival (SIFF) was successfully held at the Shanghai Exhibition Center. This year’s SIFF ING focused on cutting-edge visual innovation, establishing two competition categories: the “AIGC Section” and the “Vertical Short Video Section”. In the end, the work Mirage won the Best Creativity honor in the “AIGC Section”, Gold Fish received the Best Visual Effects honor in this section, and Clean was awarded the Best Director honor in this section; the work An Eternal Day won the Best Creativity honor in the “Vertical Short Video Section”, Hey! Juliet! was honored with the Best Cinematography award in this section, and Highway Oddity received the Ganten Special Mention honor in this section.

Highlight Moments: The Awards Ceremony and Red Carpet

This year, the “AIGC Section”, in collaboration with Dreamina AI, received over 2,600 submissions. Ultimately, six works with distinct styles and a strong experimental spirit were successfully shortlisted, hoping to jointly explore the boundaries of AI technology through this cooperation with Dreamina AI. The “Vertical Short Video Section”, exclusively sponsored by premium water brand Ganten, received entries from over 1,000 creators. Twelve creators stood out and produced an original vertical short film within a limited timeframe in June as their final competition entry.

For the shortlisted young creators, June 21 was a day filled with glory. In the morning, under the witness of jury president Wang Hongwei and jury members Luo Dong, Yu Baimei, Yu Xiaofeng, and Zhang Youhao, the creators received valuable recognition from the industry at the awards ceremony. That evening, this honor shone brightly at the Shanghai Grand Theatre. The young visual pioneers were invited to walk the red carpet at the closing ceremony of the 27th SIFF, leaving their own highlight moments and adding a star-studded perfect finale to this year’s SIFF ING.

Clash of Ideas: Exploration Classroom Inspires the Future

During the afternoon of June 21, SIFF ING held its “Exploration Classroom”, where renowned director and cinematographer Luo Dong, as the first mentor, engaged in an in-depth dialogue with young creators.

Combining his own cross-disciplinary experiences, Luo Dong explored the core themes of creation. He believes that although filmmaking involves clearly defined roles, the essence of creation is unified - rooted in a profound understanding of the work and a sincere intention to express. Only works that truly observe life and convey genuine emotions can transcend cultural barriers and resonate widely. “Sincerity is the eternal core,” Luo Dong emphasized.

Addressing the new waves of AIGC and vertical-screen formats that audiences are concerned about, Luo Dong maintains an open and embracing attitude. He believes technology has vastly expanded the dimensions and possibilities of expression while significantly lowering the barriers to creation, representing a natural progression in film technology. He also shared insights on capturing creative inspiration from everyday moments, offering much inspiration to the young filmmakers in attendance.

Empowering Dialogues: Emerging Filmmakers Engage with Audience Feedback

On the afternoon of June 20, a campus screening and exchange event took place at Shanghai Vancouver Film School’s screening hall, followed by a market screening and discussion on the morning of June 21 at the Shanghai Exhibition Center Event Hall.

The two events showcased a total of 18 shortlisted works from both the “AIGC Section” and “Vertical Short Video Section”. After the screenings, creators from both sections took the stage to share their creative visions. Those from the “AIGC Section” engaged in in-depth discussions with the audience on refining AI prompts to better meet script, scene, and sound requirements, thereby enhancing their works’ expressiveness. Meanwhile, the “Vertical Short Video Section” filmmakers exchanged practical insights on producing short films efficiently under the tight constraints of time, budget, and technology, sparking thoughtful conversations about resource-limited creativity.

These events provided a valuable platform for cutting-edge short films in both AIGC and vertical-screen formats, enabling direct dialogue between creators, industry professionals, and audiences, yielding precise market feedback.

With the successful conclusion of all activities, the 27th SIFF’s SIFF ING officially drew to a close. This was not just a celebration of honors but also a convergence of ideas and a showcase of craftsmanship. We witnessed young creators’ bold explorations amid new technological waves and felt their genuine passion for cinematic art.

This year’s SIFF ING received strong support from Dreamina AI, premium water brand Ganten, and the Shanghai Vancouver Film School. Together, let us anticipate how these fresh talents will infuse future Chinese and global cinema with even more vitality and surprises!

Creativity of the young generation will endure - SIFF ING looks forward to meeting you again in the future!