# Stuttgart animation festival asks entrants to declare generative AI use

Short-film entries for ITFS 2027 close on 15 November 2026, and AI use alone does not disqualify a film.

Published 20 October 2026 by EuGFA in The Briefing. Interests: Screen and exhibition.

## What happened

The Internationales Trickfilm-Festival Stuttgart (ITFS) has published regulations for its 2027 edition, which runs from 27 April to 2 May 2027. Section 1.1.1 requires every submitter to declare any use of generative AI in production. The rule covers tools that generate or significantly alter images, animation, text, speech or music.

The declaration does not by itself lead to disqualification. The festival may label or categorise films whose core visual design was mainly generated by AI, and may exclude a film if false or misleading AI information is knowingly given. As of 20 October 2026, entries for the short-film competitions close on 15 November 2026, at €15 for the International Competition and €10 for the Student Competition.

## Why it matters

An animator entering ITFS needs a record of generated material before filling in the form, since the declaration covers voices, music and text as well as images. The Student Competition applies the same rule.

## Still open

The regulations do not say how a label would appear or where "mainly generated" begins. They give no time of day for the deadline, and one section of the PDF still reads 15 November 2025, while the festival's submission page gives 15 November 2026.

## For your film

List the generative tools used at each stage now and copy the list into the ITFS form before 15 November 2026.

## Read further

- [ITFS 2027 regulations (PDF)](https://itfs.de/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/REGLEMENT-OF-ITFS-2027_EN.pdf)
- [ITFS submission page](https://itfs.de/en/professionals_talents/submit/)