Rules & Terms: We Are Human Festival 2026
These rules constitute the official document governing participation in the We Are Human Festival, Edition 1, dedicated to Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Organized by We Are Human (non-profit association, loi 1901, Saint-Mandé, Paris region), the Festival brings together creators from around the world around one conviction: artificial intelligence can defend humanist values. The French version of these rules is the sole legally binding version. This English version is provided for convenience.
"All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights." Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights — Palais de Chaillot, Paris, December 10, 1948
Download the Rules
📄 Download the full rules — PDF EN
Official document — version in effect as of June 1, 2026. Last revised: September 14, 2026.
Key Dates & Information
The We Are Human Festival is a free international call for films, open to all creators using artificial intelligence in their artistic practice. Key dates for Edition 2026:
Submissions open: June 1, 2026
Submission deadline: September 30, 2026 at 11:59 PM (CEST — Central European Summer Time)
Jury composition announced: October 13, 2026
Official selection announced: October 20, 2026
Awards ceremony: November 24, 2026, Forum des Images, Paris
Free submission — via FilmFreeway
International deployment: São Paulo, New York, Nairobi, Johannesburg, Mumbai, Quito and Geneva
Eligibility
The Festival is open to all forms of audiovisual creation in the age of artificial intelligence. No selection based on the creator's profile — only the work matters.
H3 Who can submit? Any visual creator, collective or independent creator, of any nationality, amateur, student or professional, aged 18 and over. No academic or professional background required. Submissions can be individual or collective in the case of co-direction, a single representative must be designated. Each creator may submit a maximum of two (2) works to this edition.
Film requirements
AI use is required in the conception, realization or form of the work — whether as a creative tool, artistic material or technical device
Works driven by an identifiable human artistic intention are eligible, regardless of the degree of AI use
Duration: 1 to 10 minutes
Completed on or after June 1, 2025
Available in digital format via FilmFreeway (direct upload or password-protected Vimeo/YouTube link)
Accepted formats: fiction, documentary, animation, experimental film, cinematic essay, music video, video art
Any language accepted — English subtitles required upon selection
Ethics Notebook — an integral part of the work
Every submission must include an Ethics Notebook — 4 questions documenting the creator's approach to AI: tools used, the human role, ethical tensions, relationship to human rights. This notebook is mandatory — its absence renders the submission incomplete. Its content is not a selection filter: no answer is eliminatory. It is an integral part of the submitted work and will be presented alongside the work throughout the festival.
Awards & Prizes
Three prizes are awarded at the official ceremony on November 24, 2026 at the Forum des Images, Paris, before an audience of professionals, institutional partners and international media. All 20 selected works benefit from international screenings across partner cities.
🏆 Grand Prix
Best work, across all dimensions. Recognizes the best audiovisual work, regardless of its form or degree of AI use. €5,000 + international screenings
✍️ Best Screenplay Award
Best writing, regardless of direction. Recognizes narrative quality and originality of vision, independent of form. €3,000 + international screenings
🤝 Ethics Award
The work that most clearly raises the question of AI and humanity. The only prize that also evaluates the creator's approach via the Ethics Notebook. Recognizes the coherence between artistic intention, AI use and commitment to human rights. €2,000 + international screenings
Creators' Rights — what you keep
The We Are Human Festival is built on full respect for creators' intellectual property. Submitting a work does not entail any rights transfer beyond what is strictly necessary for the festival's screenings.
Creators retain full ownership of their copyright and neighboring rights
Submission grants the Festival a free, non-exclusive license for a period of 24 months from the date of selection (October 20, 2026)
This license covers: in-person screenings at official partner venues, secured online screenings for non-commercial purposes, reproduction of excerpts (max. 20%, max. 2 minutes) for promotional use.
Creators remain free to distribute their work on their own channels and to show it privately at any time, and to submit it to other festivals from April 2027. The non-exclusive license granted to We Are Human remains in effect for the 24-month period set out in the Rules & Terms.
No rights transfer of any kind.
International Deployment — the selection travels
The Festival does not stop at Paris. The same official selection of 20 works travels across four continents, confronting each work with different political, social and cultural realities. These are not reprises, they are rereadings.
Paris, Forum des Images, November 24, 2026
São Paulo, Festival MixBrasil, December 10, 2026
New York, Lycée Français de New York, December 17, 2026
Nairobi, Alliance Française, January 20, 2027
Johannesburg, University of the Witwatersrand, January 28, 2027
Mumbai, AniMela, February 26 to 28, 2027
Quito, Universidad Andina Simón Bolívar, March 15 to 16, 2027
Geneva, Fondation Plaza, March 2027
Full Rules — official document
This page is a summary of the rules provided for information purposes. The complete rules, in their full and legally binding version, are available for download below in English. In the event of any discrepancy between this page and the PDF document, the French PDF prevails.
📄 Download the full rules — PDF EN
Version in effect as of June 1, 2026. Last revised: September 14, 2026 — We Are Human, Saint-Mandé (94160), France
Contact & Complaints
For any question regarding the rules, submission conditions or the selection process: 📧 contact@wearehuman.foundation
The Association commits to responding within 5 business days.
