As part of the fifth edition of the "Across the Lake" Film Festival, the workshop "Artificial Intelligence in Film and the Creative Industries" took place on 14 July in Strumica and on 15 July in Dojran. The event was organized in cooperation with the Creative Europe Desk MK.
The event attracted significant interest from film professionals and featured two distinguished speakers: Miloš Đukelić (film director and producer, Serbia), who emphasized that artists and creators should not fear artificial intelligence (AI) but embrace it as a powerful tool and creative resource; and Momchil Aleksiev (visual artist and film director, Bulgaria), who noted that while cinema will endure, production processes and professional roles are set to evolve. He also gave a practical demonstration of popular AI tools, including (ChatGPT, Midjourney, Runway, ElevenLabs etc.), showcasing their applications in film production, screenwriting, and editing.
The workshop also highlighted funding opportunities available under the MEDIA sub-programme, in particular the calls for European co-development, Mini-Slate, video games, and immersive content, as well as the Innovation Labs of the Cross-sectoral Strand, which support projects incorporating artificial intelligence (AI). In addition, participants were informed about training opportunities aimed at enhancing the professional skills of audiovisual and creative industry professionals.
Following two intensive days of workshops, the participants concluded that the future of the audiovisual sector depends on its ability to adapt to emerging technologies and on interdisciplinary collaboration between filmmakers, software developers, and industry experts. They agreed that embracing technological innovation is key to the further development of both regional and international cinema.
