Modern Uprising Studios & Screenvision Media Announce Submissions Now Open for Frame Forward Animated AI Festival

First-Ever International Festival for AI-Enabled Director-Driven Animation Celebrates Future of Storytelling

NEW YORK, Nov. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Modern Uprising Studios, the immersive studio division of Toro Science, and Screenvision Media, a national leader in premium video advertising and content representation for major cinema exhibitors, today announced the debut of the Frame Forward Animated AI Film Festival — the first global competition dedicated to celebrating the intersection where animation, artificial intelligence, and human creativity meet.

Film submissions are now open through December 30, 2025, inviting creators worldwide to submit original short films that integrate AI tools in their creative or production process. The winner will be announced in March 2026 for theatrical exhibition.

The inaugural Frame Forward Festival will highlight visionary filmmakers, artists, and technologists redefining the future of animated storytelling. Industry heavyweight jurists and animation fans can vote on their favorite films. Selected finalists will have their film trailers featured both virtually and on the big screen leveraging Screenvision's national network of 14,000 screens in 2,300 theaters across all 50 states.

"Frame Forward is about celebrating the incredible possibilities that emerge when technology and human creativity come together," said Joel Roodman, President and Head of Studio for Modern Uprising Studios. "We want to give animators and filmmakers the distribution and infrastructure to push the boundaries of their craft, and we're excited to see how artists around the world experiment with AI to tell bold, original stories that inspire the future of animation, theatrically."

"Through our Front + Center preshow, Screenvision is committed to the power of the big screen to inspire and engage moviegoers like no other medium," said Ted Bolan, Senior Vice President of Content & Creative for Screenvision Media. "Frame Forward showcases the evolution of Generative AI, highlighting how filmmakers are using these tools to push the creative envelope and bring their stories to life."

The winning filmmaker will receive a national theatrical release through Screenvision Media, immersive adaptation production via Celeste, Modern Uprising Studios' proprietary immersive rendering engine, and support for submission to leading international film festivals. Modern Uprising Studios develops, finances, and produces films, series, content, and franchise extensions designed for the immersive age — where narrative, technology, and audience merge.

Beyond competition, Frame Forward Festival serves as a launchpad for emerging creators, a showcase for next-generation tools, and a gateway for artists and filmmakers seeking visibility at the intersection of entertainment, innovation, and culture. From real-time rendering to adaptive story engines, Modern Uprising Studios leverages creative imagination and innovation into visceral reality.

For more information, visit https://frameforward.ai/ and follow @ModernUprising for festival updates.

ABOUT MODERN UPRISING STUDIOS
Modern Uprising Studios is where art, story, and machine intelligence collide — a new kind of studio built for the next revolution in entertainment. Modern Uprising is rewriting the rules of how stories are made, experienced, and remembered. Born out of Toro Science and powered by the proprietary Celeste 360º Immersive Engine, Modern Uprising Studios fuses human creativity with advanced battle-tested AI to craft immersive worlds that move beyond the screen. https://modernuprisingstudios.com/

ABOUT TORO SCIENCE
Headquartered in New York, with offices in Montreal and Dublin, Toro Science is an innovator and incubator dedicated to building dual-use technologies with broad commercial value. Toro's flagship initiative, Celeste, originated under the U.S. Air Force, converts standard 2D video (AI-generated or conventionally filmed) into 360° immersive environments for next-generation virtual training. These innovations not only redefine how the military prepares for real-world missions but also positions Toro Science at the forefront of the global immersive and interactive media revolution. Toro's entertainment venture to extend Celeste's impact into commercial markets is Modern Uprising Studios.
https://toro.science/ 

ABOUT SCREENVISION MEDIA
Headquartered in New York, N.Y., Screenvision Media is a national leader in delivering comprehensive advertising and content representation services for top-tier cinema exhibitors The Screenvision Media cinema advertising network includes nearly half of all measured cinema admissions, comprising 14,000 screens in 2,300 theatre locations across all 50 states and 94% of DMAs nationwide; delivering through more than 150 theatrical circuits, including 7 of the top 10 exhibitor companies.

PR Contact: [email protected]

SOURCE Modern Uprising Studios