MetaCannes Film3™ Festival: Where Innovation Meets Cinematic Excellence

Join us for the groundbreaking MetaCannes Film3™ Festival, returning for its 5th edition. This cutting-edge hybrid on-demand virtual film festival, held alongside the prestigious Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, is revolutionizing cinema by seamlessly blending blockchain technology, AI cinema, and the art of filmmaking. Live events are scheduled to take place in Cannes, with additional locations to be announced.

ABOUT THE FESTIVAL

MetaCannes Film3™ Festival is the world’s first traditional film festival to curate AI cinema, pioneering the integration of blockchain technology with next-generation cinematic experiences.

Now in its 5th edition, MetaCannes Film3 Festival continues to push the boundaries of what's possible in film presentation and distribution. The festival has become a launchpad for emerging talent and a showcase for established filmmakers embracing new technologies. Alumni include Tom Berkeley and Ross White, BAFTA and Oscar winners for An Irish Goodbye; Giulio Mastromauro, David di Donatello Award winner for Timo’s Winter; Miguel Faus - Calladita; and Julie Pacino - I Live Here Now.

The festival has also been at the forefront of AI cinema, with its MetaCannesNEXT program featuring pioneering works by Dave Clark, Kavan the Kid, Jeff Synthesized, Dustin Hollywood, Mark Wachholtz, and MetaPuppet.

MetaCannes Film3™ Festival also provides rich educational opportunities to filmmakers, students, creators, and audiences through on-site workshops, panel discussions, seminars, special screenings, and industry programming. Past participants include Oscar-nominated producer Rachel Winter, BAFTA and Oscar-winning producer Phil McKenzie, and live streams from the Cannes red carpet with Oscar winner Juliette Binoche.

For its 2027 edition, MetaCannes Film3™ Festival will introduce the LGBTQIA+ Spotlight, a curated program dedicated to celebrating LGBTQIA+ stories, artists, and perspectives across cinematic forms, including narrative, documentary, animation, AI cinema, and emerging storytelling.

An initiative of Film3™, the flagship brand of The Squad, MetaCannes Film3™ Festival champions bold creators working at the intersection of cinema, innovation, technology, and culture.

By combining cutting-edge technology with a commitment to diverse, forward-thinking storytelling, MetaCannes Film3™ Festival is not just participating in the evolution of cinema, it is actively shaping its future. The festival offers a unique platform for filmmakers and audiences to engage with the next wave of cinematic art, fostering a community where creativity meets technology in truly groundbreaking ways.

MetaCannes Film3™ Festival is presented by The Squad. Film3™ is a trademark of Jordan Bayne and the flagship brand of The Film Squad LLC. MetaCannes Film3 Festival is a program of The Film Squad LLC under the Film3™ brand. The Film Squad LLC operates publicly as The Squad. All rights reserved. © 2026 The Film Squad LLC.

For more information, visit metacannes.io.

Next Wave of Cinema Awards

Innovator Award

Grand Jury Golden Wave Prize

Special Jury Prize in AI Cinema

By entering the MetaCannes Film3 Festival, you agree to follow its rules and guidelines.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
• Submissions are only accepted through FilmFreeway.
• We consider films in any language, from anywhere in the world. If your film is not in English, make sure it has English subtitles where necessary.

• We consider work in progress. Please include a title card describing what is unfinished at the beginning of the submission screener.

• We consider films regardless of their premiere status. Even if your film has already premiered at another festival, whether it screened at a physical venue or online, it’s still eligible for consideration.

• We consider films regardless of their completion date. You can submit any film no matter when it was made.

• Features previously or currently being released in the US by a third party distributor are not eligible for consideration unless by Festival Director invitation.

• Features previously self-distributed by the filmmakers online are not eligible for consideration in Feature categories unless by Festival Director invitation.

• There's no additional eligibility criteria for short film categories. All shorts are eligible!

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

• All screeners must be uploaded by the appropriate deadline.

• Deadlines close at 11:59 PM PST.

• Please make sure to include a film screening link (Vimeo preferred) or upload your film to FilmFreeway in order to be considered. We do not accept physical copies of films for consideration.
• We will contact entrants if there's anything wrong with the submission. If this occurs, you will need to fix the submission issue by the requested deadline, otherwise we can't guarantee that your film will be watched in time.

• We don't provide refunds for festival entries.

• Entrants can update their screener by uploading a new video file provided your original link url does not change. The link must stay the same after you have submitted your entry. If it is replaced programmers will lose access to your screener and it may not be watched in time for consideration.

• We strongly recommend that ALL submitted films regardless of category include English subtitles (whether the film is in English or another language) so that they may be accessible to all of our Programmers. Films in a language other than English MUST have English subtitles.

HOW WE PROGRAM

• Programmers determine a festival selection through discussion and voting.

• Each participating programmer has an equal vote and no festival competition selections are made outside of this process.

• Our programmers are not required to read submission cover letters and other supporting materials, but we encourage you to submit them in case they want to learn more about you and your work.

• We don't share programming feedback with entrants.

• The MetaCannes Film3 Festival programmers' decisions are final.

IF ACCEPTED
• Accepted filmmakers will be notified via email, phone or text. Filmmakers must confirm their participation by the given deadline, otherwise they might lose their spot in the line-up.

• Accepted filmmakers must be the authors of their submitted work and be ready to sign an agreement stating that they own all rights to their film and its components ahead of screening at MetaCannes Film3 Festival.

• If accepted, entrants are responsible for delivering their festival exhibition copy, trailer, screener link, press stills and press-kit on time.

• All accepted films must have Closed Captioning in English ready in time for their festival screening. 

• We don't provide screening fees.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • I really appreciated how communicative the festival organizers are. They put in a lot of effort and genuinely care about making the whole experience positive.

    June 2026
  • Eliott Hourlier

    I’m truly delighted and honored that my film has been selected for your festival. Thank you so much for this wonderful opportunity.

    June 2026
  • The Awarehouse Studio

    Being part of MetaCannes Film3 Festival was a great joy! The films curated for the festival was an exciting blend of perspectives and thought provoking ideas. Hosting both traditional and new ways of production gave the sense that art and creativity took center stage regardless of the means by which they were produced.

    My contact with the team was fluent and the response quick and polite when there was an issue. It was evident that the heart was driving this project.

    I look forward to new events and other news coming from The Squad as we head into a new era of filmmaking.

    Much love,
    Patrik Thornell

    June 2025