Keith Zhang Partners With 'The Matrix' Vets on Soulscape, an AI Cinema Lab, Summit and 48-Hour Film Competition
Keith Zhang John Gaeta and Bruce Hunt
By Chris Gardner, The Hollywood Reporter
The inaugural event, launched by onetime Uber engineer turned Soulscape founder Zhang, is set to take place at San Francisco’s KQED headquarters on April 10-12.
"Soul over slop."
That's the mantra of a new AI cinema lab and summit scheduled to take place at San Francisco's KQED on April 10-12. It's presented by a nonprofit called Soulscape launched by an entrepreneur and onetime Uber engineer Keith Zhang with a mission to build bridges between Silicon Valley tech innovations and tools and Hollywood storytelling.
Soulscape 2026 will host 200 creators selected from thousands of applicants worldwide to convene in the city for the summit, which will feature keynote conversations, panels, tech demos, masterclasses, an AI career fair, mentorship and a red carpet finale. The centerpiece of the event will be a 48-hour short film sprint that will see the participants producing an original AI-fueled project that will be judged by a panel of experts.
Winners will share a prize pool featuring $25,000+ in-cash grants, and a $25,000+ creator arsenal comprised of software memberships and AI computing credits sponsored by Soulscape tech partner Tapnow, YouArt and ElevenLabs. Zhang is mounting the inaugural event in collaboration with Oscar-winning visual effects artist John Gaeta and assistant director Bruce Hunt, both of whom worked with the Wachowskis on The Matrix franchise. The jury will critique the crop of films while Gaeta will have the honors of judging the final five entries and personally announcing the winner.
Making up the jury will be Storyverse AI founder Jesse Z; Pixar vet and JioStar's senior vp of GenAI content and technology Stephan Vladimir Bugaj; Kartel.ai vp of creative systems Monica Monique; Hollywood Professional Association president Renard Jenkins; Pixar vet and Intangible.ai lead product designer Philip Metschan; Callandor Group founding partner and former MGM, Sony and Warner Bros. marketing executive Michael Fisk; and Google production marketing manager of generative media models Khulan Dav.
Gleam Media Studios, a Los Angeles-based creative studio that specializes in AI content, will serve as Soulscape's official studio partner in a collaboration that will see the company scouting talent and providing "thought leadership."
