Prompt2Screen is an AI cinema hackathon by VIA: teams turn a shared creative brief into finished films within a single event day. Its first edition took place on 10 October 2026 at Blox Space in Torino, Italy. Ten teams made ten films in under ten hours, responding to an Automotive brief revealed that morning. The films are now available in the Torino collection.

The edition has also received coverage from Acting News. In “Torino, un film in un giorno”, published on 11 October 2026, Daniele Cametti Aspri reports on Prompt2Screen’s one-day format and its connection to Torino’s automotive and audiovisual culture. The piece follows the earlier coverage by Film Commission Torino Piemonte.

Here is what the completed edition adds to that story: the work itself, the winning projects and a practical example of what a creative hackathon can produce.

An Italian hackathon with cinema at its centre

A cinema hackathon sets a time limit around the making of a screen work. The outcome might be a short film, a commercial or a visual experiment. At Prompt2Screen Torino, the challenge brought AI tools into that production process and ended with films ready for an evening audience.

The completed-edition totals, confirmed by the organisers, were 30 participating creators in ten teams of three. Those figures describe the teams that took part. The official event recap brings together the ten-film outcome and the 30-second sizzle reel.

For someone exploring creative hackathons in Italy, the format offers a concrete way to understand the event. Participants receive a common starting point, make creative choices as a team and deliver something that another person can watch. The deadline gives those choices consequences: a concept has to become a sequence, and a sequence has to become a finished edit.

Prompt2Screen was an official side event of Italian Tech Week. Partners for the Torino edition included Krea, ElevenLabs, Are Films and Wave by Vento. The event was organised by VIA — Visual Innovation Awards, whose programme includes AI film festivals, hackathons and screenings.

Automotive: one brief, revealed that morning

The Automotive brief connected the challenge to its host city while leaving room for different interpretations. Torino’s relationship with automotive design and industry was also a focus of the Acting News coverage.

A shared theme makes the resulting collection especially useful to watch. Each team begins with the same subject, yet the films can differ in their central idea, tone, visual language and rhythm. A car can function as a setting, an object of desire, a memory or a means of escape. Those are possibilities the brief opens up, rather than prescribed readings of any individual film.

The timing matters too. With the brief revealed on the morning of the event, the creative response had to take shape during the day. Viewers can judge the finished work with that constraint in mind: ten films, each created in under ten hours.

The winning films and the full Torino collection

The published results recognise the following projects:

  • First place: Rewind. Watch the winning film in the Torino collection.
  • Second place: Dai, Stella, by The Promptfather(s).
  • Third place: It all starts with a shape., by Team Lingotto.
  • ElevenLabs prize: The Mirror.
  • Wave side-track winner: Team eMotion. This award recognised the team’s separate side-challenge entry; the eMotion film in the main collection is its Automotive project.

The full collection also includes APE, Free Wheel, Let Them Rush, ONORA Z and Vellora. Keeping every team’s project visible lets viewers explore the range of responses alongside the award winners.

Start with the sizzle reel for a quick introduction, then watch the complete films. The conversation recorded during the event is available through the homepage’s conversation section, adding a discussion of AI, media and automation with Davide Carlomagno.

What creators can take from the format

For a future AI filmmaking challenge, three practical habits are worth preparing. These are editorial suggestions, not additional rules for the Torino competition.

Make the story legible before generating. Write down what changes between the beginning and the end. A few rough frames can reveal whether the idea holds together; our animatic guide explains how to test that cheaply.

Agree on the handoff. Decide how generated shots, sound, project files and edits move between teammates. A shared folder and a clear naming convention help the editor work while other assets are still being made.

Protect time for the final watch-through. Check the complete export, including its opening, ending and sound. Our AI short-film playback checklist covers a practical final review.

Follow the next Prompt2Screen edition

Torino was the first Prompt2Screen edition. The next city remains a surprise, with more information planned for 15 November 2026. That is an announcement date, not the date of the next hackathon.

If you would like to participate, register your interest in the next edition. In the meantime, explore the films and read the original Acting News coverage for its perspective on this Italian AI cinema hackathon.

Sources & further reading

Updated 17 October 2026. Event availability and final details are maintained on the linked official event pages.

Your next scene starts here.

Torino was the beginning. Register your interest in the next edition. More will be revealed on 15 November 2026.

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