UAE, Dubai –:

Her Highness Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairperson of Dubai Culture and Arts Authority, awarded the $1 million AI Film Award to Tunisian filmmaker Zoubeir Jlassi. The award is organised by the 1 Billion Followers Summit in collaboration with Google Gemini, for the film ‘Lily.’

The award ceremony took place during the fourth edition of the 1 Billion Followers Summit, the world’s largest event dedicated to shaping the content creator economy, organised by the UAE Government Media Office and hosted in the UAE from 9 to 11 January at Emirates Towers, DIFC, and the Museum of the Future in Dubai, under the theme ‘Content for Good.’

The summit brought together more than 15,000 content creators and influencers, along with over 580 speakers, 150 CEOs, and global experts.

Her Highness affirmed that honouring creatives and encouraging innovation across various content creation fields reflects the UAE’s commitment to nurturing talent that contributes to shaping the future of cultural and creative industries.

Her Highness noted that the world’s largest AI Film Award helps drive and grow the digital content industry, while encouraging young people to innovate through works that break conventional boundaries. The award also highlights the power of technology to empower human creativity.

She said: “Purposeful content plays a vital role in promoting positive values, strengthening community awareness and inspiring creative thinking. We take pride in supporting initiatives that empower content creators to express their perspectives and translate ideas into meaningful impact, advancing knowledge, serving society and contributing to a higher quality of life for communities.”

Her Highness noted that the 1 Billion Followers Summit has evolved into a global platform that champions innovation and celebrates young talents who are making a difference in the world of new media. She emphasised that, guided by the vision and ambition of its leadership, the UAE remains committed to building an advanced ecosystem that supports talent and equips creators with the tools to expand their impact on the global stage.

Her Highness Sheikha also congratulated the winner, commending the film for achieving an inspiring balance between technology and artistic vision, and for reflecting the spirit of a new generation leading the future of the content creation industry.

Wide global participation

The AI Film Award received 3,500 film submissions, while more than 30,000 participants from 116 countries expressed interest in the award, reflecting the scale of global engagement with this pioneering initiative. The award aims to support and encourage the production of meaningful films using various AI tools, including Google Gemini, as well as enhance creators’ creative and aesthetic capabilities to deliver positive messages that promote greater connection between cultures and raises awareness of humanitarian messages.

400 hours of film were reviewed by a specialised jury comprising 40 experts and specialists. The films underwent a comprehensive evaluation process to ensure compliance with the award’s criteria and thematic focus. Following this process, 100 films were shortlisted, while non-compliant entries were excluded.

Rigorous judging process

The shortlisted films then underwent advanced technical assessment using Google Gemini, verifying technical standards and content quality. The evaluation confirmed that each film was produced using a minimum of 70% generative AI tools from Google, with verification conducted through AI-based assessment processes.

The specialised jury, comprising global experts, advisors, and creative content creators, selected ‘Lily’ as one of 12 films shortlisted for public voting. Following the audience vote and with internal evaluation, the film advanced to the final list of five nominees.

Under the first theme, ‘Rewrite Tomorrow,’ the shortlisted films included ‘HEAL’ by Egyptian director Mohamed Gomaa, ‘Cats Like Warmth’ by South Korean director Lee Su Yeol, ‘Homeward’ by UK-based director Nav Lotay, ‘Roots of Tomorrow’ by German director Daniel Titz, ‘Maestra’ by Spanish director Hilario Abad, and ‘Dreams Don’t Die’ by director Omar Rammal.

Under the second theme, ‘The Secret Life of,’ the shortlisted films included ‘The Translator’ by Pylyp Li from the USA, ‘Portrait No. 72’ by Rodson Verr Suarez from the Philippines, ‘Ceremony’ by German director Mark Wachholz, ‘The Beginning’ by Jordanian director Ibraheem Diab, ‘Lily’ by Tunisian director Zoubeir Jlassi, and ‘Pursuit of Pearl’ by Canadian director Zahir Khan.

The five films shortlisted for the final competition were ‘Portrait No. 72,’ ‘Cats Like Warmth,’ ‘Lily,’ ‘HEAL,’ and ‘The Translator.’

All shortlisted films reflected the award’s high standards in clear storytelling, visual aesthetics, creative integration of AI technologies, artistic innovation, and adherence to transparency and ethical principles.

Jury

The specialized jury included Dan Germain, Executive Creative Director at Google Studios, London; Ali Ali, filmmaker, co-founder of Good People and a Cannes Lions Film Jury member; Christian Haas, Executive Creative Director at YouTube; Piotr Dabkowski, Co-Founder and CTO of ElevenLabs, leading advanced AI voice research and named to the TIME100 AI 2024 list; and Marina Mogilko, known as ‘Silicon Valley Girl,’ entrepreneur, content creator, and podcast host with more than 18 million followers.

A human story with distinctive visual language

The winning film follows a lonely archivist whose life is upended by a doll that became trapped on his car bumper during a hit-and-run accident he committed.

Haunted by the object, which reveals itself as the spiritual link to the survivor, the protagonist is driven to confront his guilt and ultimately chooses redemption by confessing to the police and reuniting the doll with the child in the hospital.

The film powerfully illustrates that objects are silent witnesses to our actions, carrying the weight of truth and demanding moral accountability.