On April 25, the 15th Beijing International Film Festival (BJIFF) AIGC Film Unit Awards Ceremony was held at the 4K Studio of the Academic Exchange Center of the Communication University of China. Zhao Weiran, teacher from the Future Imaging Center of the School of Performing Arts of Beijing City University, attended the ceremony as the lead creator of the participating team. During the event, the annual honors were announced, and the sci-fi short film Poem of Bones, in which Zhao served as the co-director, stood out to win the “Technological Innovation” award in the university category of the AIGC Film Unit.
The 15th BJIFF AIGC Film Unit, guided by the core philosophy of “Technology as the Blade, Humanity as the Soul,” continues to explore the boundless possibilities of deep integration between artificial intelligence and cinematic art. This year’s unit received 1,502 submissions from 33 countries and regions, including China, the United States, Germany, and France.
(Selected stills from the short film)
Poem of Bones is a sci-fi short centered on AI awakening, depicting how the No. 789 AI training model breaks free from systemic constraints to attain free will. In the film, AI serves both as a narrative tool and the story’s subject. The visual concept design and script development were also assisted by AI tools. The production primarily utilized virtual production and AIGC-related technologies, with certain close-up and special effects scenes created through image-to-video generation methods.
This year’s AIGC Film Unit aimed to advance the dual-track goals of “internationalized” and “popularized” by expanding international submission channels, inviting globally renowned experts to form the jury panel, and promoting the widespread adoption of AI creative tools to foster a wave of inclusive, innovative filmmaking.
Our university and the School of Performing Arts will continue to explore the application of virtual production, AIGC, and embodied intelligence, striving to cultivate interdisciplinary talents who excel in both artistic and technical fields, merging creativity with engineering prowess.
