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How do we tell stories in the age of artificial intelligence? And what new possibilities emerge when cinema, animation, CGI and digital technologies become tools for shaping memories, emotions and personal imaginaries?
These are some of the questions at the heart of the collaboration between Istituto Marangoni Milano Design and RED-EYE, an international editorial platform dedicated to contemporary visual culture, exploring the connections between art, fashion, design and technological innovation.
The project involved students from the Visual Communication Design department in an experimental journey focused on emerging audiovisual languages, encouraging them to explore the potential of generative artificial intelligence and develop their own creative vision.
The initiative is part of the educational programme led by Paola Rolli, Programme Leader of the Visual Communication Design department at Istituto Marangoni Milano Design, and involved Gloria Maria Cappelletti, Editor-in-Chief and Creative Director of RED-EYE, and Ced Pakusevskij, director and art director, who guided students through the development of their projects during a masterclass dedicated to the new frontiers of filmmaking.
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From Personal Experience to Visual Experimentation
A childhood memory, a meaningful place, a family story or an unspoken thought. The starting point of the project was deliberately personal: students were invited to identify an element of their own experience and transform it into the opening frame of a narrative capable of venturing into entirely new visual territories.
Guided by Ced Pakusevskij throughout every stage of the process, participants experimented with combining traditional filmmaking, AI-generated imagery, CGI, motion design, animation, compositing and sound design, selecting the tools best suited to their individual storytelling needs.
The aim was not simply to acquire technical skills or explore the features of new software, but to understand how technology can expand an author's expressive possibilities. Artificial intelligence thus became a tool for reinterpreting memories, creating atmospheres, imagining alternative scenarios and making visible emotions and thoughts that are difficult to convey through traditional cinematic languages.
This approach reflects one of the most significant transformations taking place in contemporary creativity: the gradual blurring of boundaries between cinema, animation, gaming and digital production, giving rise to increasingly hybrid and experimental forms of storytelling.
Eight Short Films Exploring Identity, Memory and the Future
Among the works developed during the programme, projects by Ada Pachon, Ayleen Shaker, Chu Tran Bao Linh, Emil Gasanov, Laura Medina, Maximilian Gatev, Oskar Knoph Bruun and Polina Khaybullina were selected, bringing together eight young creatives who interpreted the theme through different visual languages and individual perspectives.
The short films address deeply contemporary issues, ranging from identity and cultural belonging to the influence of technology on personal choices, from family memories to the perception of the body, and the increasingly blurred boundaries between reality and imagination.
In LINGUAL, Ada Pachon transforms the language barrier into a science-fiction narrative reflecting on the social pressure to adapt and the importance of preserving one's identity. With HALO, Ayleen Shaker imagines a future in which an AI-powered neural implant promises to simplify every decision, raising questions about the relationship between personal autonomy and technological dependence.
Cultural identity takes centre stage in Teeth Blackening, Chu Tran Bao Linh's project, which revisits an ancient Vietnamese beauty tradition to question the influence of Western aesthetic standards and the loss of cultural roots. In KIBAЛ / HOME, Emil Gasanov draws on footage from his parents' 1998 wedding in distant Dagestan to create an intimate narrative about memory, family and the meaning of belonging.
In The Edge, Laura Medina uses artificial intelligence to explore the desire to escape the repetitive nature of everyday life, while Maximilian Gatev imagines a surreal world affected by an insomnia pandemic in The Vigil. With NESBYEN 2042, Oskar Knoph Bruun transforms an unusual childhood memory into a futuristic vision of sport and the limits of the human body. Finally, in Boullerina, Polina Khaybullina explores the relationship between dance, memory and emotions, bringing movement and digital depth to paintings she created by hand.
espite their differences, all eight projects share a fundamental element: the desire to use emerging technologies not merely as production tools, but as an integral part of a personal creative process in which the author's vision remains central.
A Collaboration Bridging Education and the Creative Industry
The project is a concrete example of Istituto Marangoni Milano Design's educational approach, which promotes dialogue between research, experimentation and professional practice, offering students opportunities to engage with the transformations shaping the creative industry.
The collaboration with RED-EYE enabled participants to develop projects that engage with the languages of international visual communication, while benefiting from direct exchanges with professionals working across cinema, creative direction, publishing and digital innovation.
In this context, Gloria Maria Cappelletti, a leading figure in exploring the relationship between visual culture and emerging technologies, played an active role in selecting the most outstanding projects and featuring them across RED-EYE's channels, helping bring the students' work to a wider audience beyond the academic environment.
From the D&AD Awards to Milano Film Fest: Talent Beyond the Classroom
The RED-EYE experience is part of a broader educational journey that sees Visual Communication Design students at Istituto Marangoni Milano Design engaging with the international creative landscape through projects, collaborations and initiatives promoted and supported by Programme Leader Paola Rolli.
Among the most significant achievements of 2026 is the Wood Pencil at the D&AD New Blood Awards, won by Maximilian Gatev, Laura Medina and Oskar Knoph Bruun for The Bench Marks. Developed under the guidance of tutor Andrea Bomentre in response to a brief by Affinity and Canva, the project reimagines the public bench as a space for connection, interaction and shared experiences.
Further demonstrating the school's commitment to emerging audiovisual languages was its participation in Milano Film Fest 2026, featuring screenings of short films created by Visual Communication Design students and the masterclass Slipping Past. Beyond the Screen, dedicated to the evolution of cinema in the age of artificial intelligence and immersive media. The session featured Ced Pakusevskij, Francesco Briganti and Selim Unlusoy.
These different experiences share a common purpose: to offer students meaningful opportunities to engage with the professional world, develop their own creative identity and take their ideas beyond the boundaries of the classroom.
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