The AI Film That Won MIT's Global Film Hack

01 · breaking news · ▶ on the show at 7:41

Google Omni demo

Google IO brought more than 100 announcements, and the one Chris singled out for creatives was Omni, Google's new video model. This demo, made in a hotel room at IO by a friend of the show, shows finger-snap edits to real footage: lights flickering, an animal appearing at his feet, blinds opening to flood the room with light, and a water bottle filling with water or switching material. Chris called it video inpainting at the highest level, and pictured it teamed with Seedance for raw footage and Suno for music.

“This is essentially video inpainting at the highest level.”Chris Branch · ▶ 9:46

02 · breaking news · ▶ on the show at 12:55

Runway Aleph 2.0

By Runway

Video to video was meant to be Omni's moment, then Runway stepped in with Aleph 2.0. Runway were the originators of video inpainting with Aleph, and have run competitions for its best creative use. The new version lets a single edit carry through the rest of your video. Chris called it the Nano Banana moment for video: the control creators have had with images, finally applied to footage, so there is far less regenerating. News items don't get a poll, but Chris asked for BTS submissions showing video inpainting in action.

“It's basically the Nano Banana moment for video.”Chris Branch · ▶ 14:48

Runway Aleph 2.0

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03 · breaking news · ▶ on the show at 16:35

Reactor real-time world model preview

By Reactor

A real-time world model called Reactor, which Chris first saw when Eliott Mogenet showed him what he was building with it in Cannes. The preview shows worlds generated in real time on a global low-latency network. Early access opened at the end of April, but there was no access available on the website at the time of the show. Chris thinks world models with more temporal memory, gamification and creative storytelling will be one of the biggest stories of the year, closer to dropping into an MMORPG than watching a film.

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04 · ▶ on the show at 21:20

pixelBento for Google Flow

By László Gaál

László Gaál teamed up with Google Flow on pixelBento, a set of colour grading and glitch effect tools inside Flow, and, according to the Google team, made this launch film off the cuff. It walks through a virtual studio, every effect on the movie set comes from pixelBento, and the song names each tool in turn. László also ran the Runway competition shown a couple of weeks earlier and started the Porsche behind-the-scenes trend. Chris was bobbing his head, but the chat was a mixed bag.

“What a load of talent, to create a song, to create the video, to make it all work together.”Chris Branch · ▶ 25:09

Google Flow

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05 · ▶ on the show at 27:24

Reactor Demo

By Eliott Mogenet

Eliott Mogenet's own film made in the Reactor world model: a narrated sweep through the story of progress, from fire and empires to splitting the atom, ending on the line that the next chapter is ours to write. In a jetlag moment Chris skipped it at first, then ran back to it after the pixelBento ad. The image quality isn't mint yet, as the chat pointed out, but the point is that there's no game engine behind it. The vote split down the middle.

“The insane thing about it is that there's no game engine behind this.”Chris Branch · ▶ 29:21

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06 · ▶ on the show at 33:34

OMODA JAECOO launch campaign with Jean Reno

By Darbyon, Joseph Repain

A real, running TV ad from French creative agency Darbyon, starring Jean Reno, as Eliott spotted in the chat straight away. The LinkedIn post claims it's the most successful launch in French automotive history. It's 30 seconds, in French and not visually spectacular, but Chris liked that you can't easily spot where the AI was used; his guess was establishing shots in a big hybrid production. One viewer noticed the car's tyres moving oddly. The chat landed firmly on 2, and so did Chris.

“It's always good when you don't really spot where the AI was used.”Chris Branch · ▶ 36:29

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07 · ▶ on the show at 38:02

CRAFTR 2.0

By Simon Meyer

Simon Meyer, one of the most watched creators on LinkedIn and on this show, made the ad for his own app. CRAFTR 2.0 is a browser plug-in made by AI filmmakers for AI filmmakers, to write, structure, edit and reuse prompts. The ad stars elderly characters complaining about tiny prompt windows, slow servers and buying 400 Mac minis for their tight Hollywood deadlines. Chris said you know it's a Simon Meyer piece within seconds. It took the most 1s of the night.

“Why don't we use it for human emotion and funny, and finally we're starting to see that mature.”Chris Branch · ▶ 41:36

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08 · ▶ on the show at 43:34

Claude Spec Ad

By Jagger Waters

Submitted by Jagger Waters, a spec ad for Claude. The note with it said the aim was to show visually what agentic workflows will do in our daily tasks, and that, as a writer above all else, Jagger focused on making every shot matter for the story. Chris called it a fun little piece, and was glad to see briefs like this appearing, with creators getting budgets to show how agents fit into the creative workflow. The chat went mostly 1.

“People are just getting budgets to make videos using these agents to showcase how they can work in the creative workflow.”Chris Branch · ▶ 45:59

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09 · ▶ on the show at 47:09

Gucci Bloom Spec Ad

By Ilan Bouni

A 30-second spec ad by Ilan Bouni, whose post credits Seedance 2. A nervous character overthinks which single flower to bring on a first date, then brings the whole shop, revealed at the end as Gucci Bloom. Chris loved the characters and the Tim Burton-ish world, but said the robotic voices broke the immersion, and the chat added that better music would have helped. A spec ad doesn't have to be on brand, which Chris says is exactly why they're easier than real ads. The chat leaned 2.

“I love the characters and I love the world, but the voices threw me off a bit.”Chris Branch · ▶ 48:40

Seedance 2.0

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10 · ▶ on the show at 51:01

Sweat Never Expires (Adidas Spec Ad)

By Bam Bam, Josh Chaiton

A one-minute Adidas spec ad submitted by Josh Chaiton on behalf of director Bam Bam, made with Nano Banana for the images and Kling 3.0 for the motion. Older walkers, lifters, aqua aerobics fans and yoga lovers, all in Adidas tracksuits, under the line that sweat never expires. Chris loved the elevator-music intro, the drop into the beat and the editing to it, but wanted subtler three-stripes touches, like three bars on the weights instead of four or five. A strong vote.

“The drop into the beat and the overall pacing with the editing with the beat in mind, I thought that was really nicely done.”Chris Branch · ▶ 52:42

Nano BananaKling 3.0

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11 · ▶ on the show at 55:50

Shilajit AC (Air Conditioner Spec Ad)

By Amit Bimrot

Perfect timing on the hottest day of the year: an air conditioner spec ad. Amit Bimrot followed up the energy drink spec shown on an earlier episode with a speculative air conditioner that doesn't just cool spaces but transforms environments, turning Jaisalmer into snowfall. Super cool. The beat picked up with extra drums towards the end and had Chris bobbing his head, and his advice for anyone submitting was that a good edit to a good beat goes a long way. A clear 1 from the chat.

“Good integrated music, guys, is going to win me over when you're submitting to the show.”Chris Branch · ▶ 58:11

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12 · ▶ on the show at 59:00

Shilajit AC (Behind the Scenes)

By Amit Bimrot

Watched back to back with the ad and given its own poll. Cameras roll, an uncle who has played a bus driver and a village head asks what's next, and someone is asked to sing the jingle. Chris put it in the line of behind-the-scenes films that László Gaál started, and said a well-made BTS can be as interesting as the piece itself, if not funnier; one recent competition even gave its best BTS award to a film outside the top 10. Straight 1s.

“This is an entirely new category of AI stuff, and it's interesting and can be as interesting, if not funnier, than the piece itself if done well like this.”Chris Branch · ▶ 1:01:04

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13 · ▶ on the show at 1:02:45

Stan

By Oliver Finel

Second place in Runway's Big Pitch contest, by Oliver Finel. Satan has moved to Florida, goes by Stan now, and wants the one thing he's never had: a friend. Every attempt to lend a hand in his own special way ends up evil. The chat fell for his yellow bum bag, with one viewer saying they came for Stan and stayed for his fanny pack. Chris called a unanimous vote before it was in, and it held: every vote was a 1.

“This may be our first unanimous.”Chris Branch · ▶ 1:06:07

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14 · ▶ on the show at 1:07:04

In Dreams Awake

By Katherine Gloria

Third place in Runway's Big Pitch contest, a 2 minute 48 second piece by Katherine Gloria. A girl keeps dreaming of the same forest, officials warn people away from the woods, and someone she has seen in the dream is out there. Chris found the mix of styles somewhat hard to follow, but praised the storytelling and the craft. One viewer wanted to give it a 1.5, which Chris loved; in a three-option poll that went down as a 2, and so did most of the chat.

“Somewhat hard to follow just because of the intermingling of different styles, but the overall level of storytelling was really nice.”Chris Branch · ▶ 1:10:33

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15 · ▶ on the show at 1:13:02

The Most Perfect Perfect Person

By Paul Trillo, Fable Studios, Artclass Films, Asteria

Chris caught up with Paul Trillo at Google IO; he's been one of Chris's favourite creators since the early days of AI video. This is a 20-second teaser from the film, billed as the first AI film based on a true story and made by Fable Studios, Artclass Films and Asteria: a voice asks Poppy how she's coping with the fans, the press and the constant need to be on, before Poppy introduces herself. As a teaser it went straight into the behind the scenes instead of its own poll.

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16 · ▶ on the show at 1:15:04

The Most Perfect Perfect Person (Behind the Scenes)

By Paul Trillo

Paul Trillo's breakdown answers the question everyone was asking: which parts were synthetic and which were real? Some might be disappointed, his post says, that 98.6% of the film was shot live action with real actors and a real crew. Chris said it's the answer to every AI doubter asking where the skill is, because Paul invents workflows instead of following them. The chat wasn't sold on the music in the BTS, though, and it took the lowest score of the night.

“The thing that Paul does that no one else does is he invents workflows.”Chris Branch · ▶ 1:14:51

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17 · ▶ on the show at 1:19:24

Clickbait

By Uncanny Harry

Uncanny Harry, real name Ryan Phillips, on the odds that we're living in a simulation. A TV presenter lays out the argument while a family bickers at home, a 3, 2, 1 countdown reflects in a character's eyes, and the lights and code switch on. Ryan put himself in the thumbnail with bleeding eyes and based the presenter on his own face, and the chat spotted an Uncanny Harriet poster on the girl's bedroom wall. His post says it was made with invideo's Agent One. Straight 1s.

“I don't know how he makes them so prolifically, honestly. He is just so good at this stuff.”Chris Branch · ▶ 1:19:31

Invideo Agent One

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18 · ▶ on the show at 1:26:14

The Interview

By Vinu Joseph, Harsh Tiwari

Submitted by Vinu Joseph and Harsh Tiwari. In 2042 the last human job is automated, and a government scheme, the Human Applicant Program, pays people to interview for jobs they'll never get. Evan Blank's radical honesty accidentally lands him the job of chief innovation officer. The show played a section of the longer film. Chris praised the lip sync, lighting, sound design and editing, and said a little uncanniness in the speech nearly made it a 2 for him, but the premise carried it. Straight 1s.

“It is like a potential Black Mirror future that we're all going to experience.”Chris Branch · ▶ 1:33:21

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19 · ▶ on the show at 1:35:05

Department of Good Memories

By Caroline Kiessling

Best film at the 2026 MIT Global AI Film Hack, by Caroline Kiessling. Pearl works in a department that stores good memories, until one arrives that is tarnished where it should glow and painful where it should comfort. Chris called it one of the standouts of the show, while Paul spotted nods to the BFG's dream jars, Harry Potter and Loki. It was made with Claude, Nano Banana, Veo 3.1 and Kling, plus, as Caroline put it, her brain. Lots of 1s and a few scattered 2s.

“Now that, guys, is well-developed storytelling.”Chris Branch · ▶ 1:41:37

ClaudeNano BananaVeo 3.1Kling 3.0

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20 · ▶ on the show at 1:44:28

ALUCARD: Bathory Manor, Chapter II

By Andrea De Nittis, ZeroAIStudio

A 31-minute gothic horror and dark fantasy film from Andrea De Nittis and ZeroAIStudio, who were watching in the chat; the show played the first five minutes. The opening scene shocked both Chris and Paul, before a servant of Lady Elizabeth's household welcomes a family whose daughters will soon be made into proper ladies. Chris said the world felt very real and the characters and pacing stayed true to the genre. One viewer saw a touch of Kurosawa, another questioned an eyeline at the door.

“The world that was developed here felt very real.”Chris Branch · ▶ 1:51:25

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21 · ▶ on the show at 1:53:30

Three Bells at Blackwood Hall (Official Trailer)

By Jon Boden, Jonny Laverty

A 1 minute 13 second trailer made in two weekends by Jon Boden and his lead producer Jonny Laverty from Belfast. Jonny created the concept and all the visuals; Jon wrote the dialogue and the song and did the editing and sound design. It was all made with Nano Banana and Kling in Artlist Studio, as Seedance didn't work well there yet. The epic score was no accident: Jon used Suno to generate variations and mashed them together himself so the bells land on cue.

“The storytelling and the style matter so much more nowadays than the tools themselves.”Chris Branch · ▶ 1:56:38

Nano BananaKlingArtlistSuno

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22 · ▶ on the show at 1:58:01

Bang Bang (Paul Oakenfold Official Music Video)

By Toby Hyder

To close, a change of tone after the gothic horror. Toby Hyder, whose Hundred Years' War series has featured on earlier episodes, went left field with an official music video for Paul Oakenfold's Bang Bang. When Toby first posted it he told Chris he had something Chris would like, and he wasn't wrong: Chris called the song a banger, with visuals, editing and pacing that matched it, while the chat loved the sync with the drop. A strong finish.

“The song was a banger, wasn't it? And the visuals went really nicely with it.”Chris Branch · ▶ 2:04:33

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