In this issue
| 🌟Nick Spiller named AAIFF Board Director & Chair, Selection Committee |
| 🛠Chase Cason joins as Director of Platform Engineering |
| 🎟Submissions are open through August 15 |
Selecting the year's best work
As submissions arrive for AAIFF 2026, we're building the team that will shape how films are discovered, selected, and celebrated. Today we're proud to introduce the leadership behind our Official Selection.
We are thrilled to announce Nick Spiller as AAIFF Board Director and Chair of the Selection Committee, along with Chase Cason as Director of Platform Engineering.
Every film is watched and scored independently by multiple members of the Selection Committee. The work then advances through successive rounds of review, ensuring that films earn their place on merit rather than a single opinion. The highest-scoring films across our categories will ultimately form the AAIFF Official Selection 2026.
Be part of the AAIFF Official Selection 2026. Submissions close August 15.
| Submit Your Film |
Nick Spiller
Nick Spiller, Board Director and Chair, Selection Committee.
For over a decade, Nick has built his career on a single, defining skill: investing at the earliest stages of frontier technology and supporting ventures to break through.
As Managing Director at Capital Factory, the venture firm for startups advancing civilization, Nick has a front row seat to the AI build out in Texas and across the US. He is also a well known local Austin podcast host, running the Austinpreneur podcast, and was previously host of the Beta Business podcast.
At AAIFF, Nick brings his critical eye for true innovation to the Selection Committee. Evaluating the frontier of AI cinema requires looking past technical novelty to find the pieces where the tools are genuinely serving a powerful idea. As Chair, he leads the Selection Committee and shapes the rigorous review process that upholds our standard for human-authored storytelling.
On weekends, you'll find him smoking brisket or on the golf course with his wife, Blair, and their son, James.
"A dramatic expansion in our capacity to tell stories is upon us. Perhaps within that is a chance to unleash the film industry beyond Hollywood. Austin would be a great place for it to come, only if equipped with AI tools. The promise of AI is greater than Austin and will enable any film to be created anywhere. Therefore, I look forward to seeing stories from around the world come to life with AI in my role at the festival."
Chase Cason
Chase Cason, Director of Platform Engineering.
Chase is a builder focused on creating intuitive technology for filmmakers and creative teams. He is the founder of Cannon Studio, an AI-powered filmmaking platform designed to be the most seamless path from idea to AI film. His work centers on simplifying complex workflows and building products that help people create without friction.
As Director of Platform Engineering, Chase builds the systems that power submissions, judging, and selection, giving filmmakers a seamless experience and the committee the tools to discover the best work.
"The best software knows exactly where to give and take control. Complex systems should feel simple to the people who use them. That's the north star design principle I'm following as I build Cannon Studio and the Festival's management platform."
What's next
With its Selection Committee leadership in place, AAIFF is building toward a festival that reflects Austin's creative energy, technological leadership, and growing role in the future of storytelling.
AAIFF 2026 will take place October 16–17 at ZACH Theatre in Austin.
Submissions for AAIFF 2026 are open until August 15. If you're creating work with AI as part of your filmmaking process, we invite you to submit.
| Submit Your Film |