Has the time come for AI creators to get the spotlight?

For years, creators working with artificial intelligence have largely existed on the periphery of the creative economy.

While their work circulated on social media and became case studies, there was a fear of calling them ‘creatives’ in the mainstream, as AI-generated work has been viewed as experimental rather than professional.

That perception is beginning to change.

Over the past several months, various indicators — from the Tribeca Festival to the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, independent film studio A24, and the inaugural Generated Awards—have signaled something larger. The world's most influential creative institutions are beginning to recognize and showcase AI creators not as fringe, but as legitimate members of the creative community.

This Moment Is An Important Inflection Point for AI

A big signal came from Tribeca.

This year, Dreams of Violets became the first fully AI-generated feature film accepted into the official lineup of a major U.S. film festival. Directed by Iranian-born brothers Ash and Pooya Koosha, the 75-minute docudrama tells the story of Iranian civilians caught in political violence using AI-generated imagery rather than a traditional production crew.

What stood out most was the film's purpose. Unable to safely film inside Iran, the filmmakers turned to AI as a storytelling tool rather than a production shortcut. Tribeca's decision to screen the film suggested the importance of judging AI-assisted work by its storytelling quality rather than its production method.

The conversation continued at Cannes.

According to festival organizers, approximately 40% of all Cannes Lions entries disclosed using artificial intelligence in some capacity during production. That figure has doubled from 20% just one year earlier and nearly quadrupled from only 11% in 2024.

Cannes introduced stricter disclosure rules this year, requiring agencies to identify AI use and to provide stronger proof that campaigns produced measurable business impact. And while total entries declined by roughly 25% , the question of what qualifies as award-worthy work took the pressure off of the crutch of rewarding only the technology.

Earlier this year, New York City hosted the inaugural Generated Awards —the first awards program dedicated entirely to AI-generated commercial advertising. Unlike AI conferences that focus on software demonstrations or conversations about the future, the Generated Awards celebrated completed work and the people who created it. Both speculative and commercial campaigns were nominated, and were created using tools such as Sora, Veo, Runway Gen-4, Kling, and Hailuo. The work competed across nine categories and were judged by an independent jury of experienced creative leaders.

Traditional studios are also preparing for the future. Independent film company A24 recently announced a $75 million partnership with Google DeepMind to explore AI-assisted filmmaking workflows. Although the announcement generated backlash from some who viewed the collaboration as inconsistent with A24’s reputation for championing independent artists, the criticism itself may reveal something important. AI experimentation by a film studio at this scale would have seemed improbable a year ago.

The conversation has shifted from "Should we use AI?" to “How should we use AI responsibly?"

And while there are still legitimate concerns surrounding copyright, employment, misinformation, and creative ownership, those debates can happen in the background rather than the foreground.

In the meantime let’s welcome the emergence of a new professional: the AI creator, a title that the creative industries are beginning to open their doors to.