“Spirit over the cliff.”
That’s the slogan for the new Artificial Intelligence Cinema Lab and summit scheduled to be held at KQED in San Francisco from April 10-12. It is presented by a non-profit organization called Soulscape launched by entrepreneur and former Uber engineer Keith Zhang on a mission to build bridges between Silicon Valley’s technology innovations and tools and Hollywood’s storytelling.
Soulscape 2026 will host 200 innovators selected from thousands of applicants around the world to converge on the city for the summit, which will include keynote talks, panel discussions, technology demos, masterclasses, an AI careers fair, mentorship, and a red carpet finale. The centerpiece of the event will be a 48-hour short film that will see participants produce an original AI-powered project that will be judged by a panel of experts.
Winners will share a prize pool that includes more than $25,000 in cash grants, and a $25,000 creator arsenal consisting of software memberships and AI computing credits sponsored by technology partner Soulscape Tapnow, YouArt and ElevenLabs. Chang is organizing the opening event in collaboration with Academy Award-winning visual effects artist John Gaeta and assistant director Bruce Hunt, both of whom worked with the Wachowskis on Matrix privilege. The jury will critique the selection of films while Gaeta will have the honor of judging the final five entries and personally announcing the winner.
The judging panel will be Storyverse AI founder Jesse Z; Pixar vet and senior vice president of GenAI content and technology at JioStar Stefan Vladimir Bugai; Kartel.ai VP of Creative Systems Monica Monique; Hollywood Professionals Association President Raynard Jenkins; Pixar vet and Intangible.ai lead product designer Philippe Mechan; Co-founder of Callandor Group and former marketing executive at MGM, Sony and Warner Bros. Michael Fisk; and Google Production Marketing Manager for Generative Media Models, Khulan Duff.
Gleam Media Studios, a Los Angeles-based creative studio specializing in AI content, will serve as Soulscape’s official studio partner in a collaboration that will see the company scout talent and provide “thought leadership.”
“Currently, the Internet is filled with AI-generated visual garbage, content designed for attention and algorithms rather than human hearts,” Zhang said in a statement. “At Soulscape, we’re building the digital Bauhaus movement for the 21st century and building bridges, not walls. We believe that no matter how endless the AI landscape is, every pixel should serve a deep human story. We’re not just hosting an event, we’re building a ‘Y Combinator meets A24’ ecosystem to empower the next generation of storytellers, and we’re honored to have legends like John Gaeta and Bruce Hunt opening doors for them.”
Tickets and more information can be found here.
