“AI Is the Most Democratic Form of Filmmaking” — Georgely Tóth on Atlas i3, Authorship, and Winning the MetaMorph Award

Atlas i3 has won the Long Form Category.

What was the original creative spark behind your film, and why did you choose to tell this story using AI? 

Georgely Tóth: The original spark was not the story or the film itself,  it was the technology that inspired me. I had an earlier story, which gradually evolved as I became more familiar with the language and possibilities of AI filmmaking.

How did working with AI change your role as a filmmaker, artist or storyteller during the process?

Georgely Tóth: AI is the most democratic form of filmmaking. Everyone starts with the same opportunities, and everyone faces the exact same limitations. I found this incredibly appealing. At the same time, it is also one of the most complex forms. There is no cinematographer, no actors, no sound engineer supporting the director, everything has to be managed at once.

Where did you feel most in control of the work, and where did the technology surprise you?

Georgely Tóth: This is the most fascinating part of the process. I am a director, and in recent years I have mainly worked in VFX. Working with AI is surprising, at times it performs very poorly, and at other times it is frighteningly good. This contrast will be even more visible in the second part of Atlas i3, where the focus was specifically on this and on character movement within space. AI is constantly improving, and you continuously learn how to use it more effectively. In traditional filmmaking, continuity and acting are given, and the challenge lies in creating spectacular scenes. With AI, it is the opposite: spectacular visuals are relatively easy to create, while continuity and believable performances are the real challenges.

What part of the film feels most personal to you?

Georgely Tóth: The relationship between the father and daughter is the most interesting aspect for me, and it will continue to develop further in the sequel.

What does being part of MetaMorph 2026 mean to you at this moment in the evolution of AI storytelling?

Georgely Tóth: Participation in MetaMorph 2026 was extremely important to me. I did not expect this film to win any awards at all. Even being selected was already a great honor. AI filmmaking is currently going through a very challenging period. I often encounter strong resistance from people who only see the machine behind the work. I believe the only path forward for AI filmmaking is to take the role of authorship back from the AI and place it firmly with the human creator. AI should be treated as a tool, and the more visible the creator is behind the film, the more AI filmmaking can become a true and independent art form. In this, high-quality festivals like MetaMorph AI play a crucial role.  Festivals like this highlight the human behind the machine-generated images and, step by step, make this art form more widely accepted.