Creators Conference 2026: Framing the Future of Filmmaking

On the opening day of the 43rd Filmfest München we were at the Amerikahaus for the Produktionsallianz Creators Conference. More than 400 guests, 40 speakers and 15 panels on the questions the industry is actually wrestling with.

[k]eine produktion at the Creators Conference, Amerikahaus München July 16, 2026 Industry

I. Opening day at the Amerikahaus

The 43rd Filmfest München begins, and before the first film runs, the industry is already sitting down together. The Produktionsallianz Creators Conference invited us to the Amerikahaus, right in the middle of Munich, at 35 degrees. Outside, the light-up letters stood in the sun. Inside, the hall filled up.

Entrance of the Amerikahaus in Munich with its bronze sign above the door, guests walking in — Arriving at the Amerikahaus

Large illuminated wooden letters reading hashtag CC26 in front of the Amerikahaus facade — #CC26, out in the sun

II. More than 400 guests, 40 speakers, 15 panels

The numbers sound like a conference at first. More than 400 guests, 40 speakers, 15 panels. It got interesting with the topics the Produktionsallianz had picked: new markets, storytelling in the age of AI, financing and producing as a creative stance. Four building sites we are all working on in parallel right now.

Michelle Müntefering on stage at the Creators Conference, a large projection behind her showing her name and her role as CEO of the Produktionsallianz — Michelle Müntefering opens the conference

Between the panels stood a wall headed “Wanted”, where guests could write down on Post-its what the industry is missing. It made for a fairly blunt snapshot. “Openness and tolerance.” “Stories that inspire.” “Vertical script writer.” “Women in front of and behind the camera, 50+.” And, because that counts too, “good spirits.”

Black display wall reading Wanted, covered in colourful Post-its with handwritten notes from guests — The Wanted wall, filled in by the guests

Speaker with a microphone on the podium, a blue lit projection behind him — On the podium

III. What the day came down to

By the end, all those hours boiled down to two sentences, and both sound simpler than they are. The first: AI is becoming more important, the human being remains the decisive part. That sounds reassuring, but it reads more like a work instruction. Being able to operate the technology is not the same as having told a story.

The second sentence is the one we took home. What drives producing in the future are real cooperations and partnerships. Not the loose declaration of intent after the third drink, but the kind of collaboration where both sides put something in and both get something out. A large part of our work runs exactly like that. A day like this is a reminder of why networking pays off, when somebody actually calls afterwards.

Stage during the wrap-up of the Creators Conference, a lighting design of bright beams above the hall, the logos of funders and partners on the screen — Wrap-up with the funders and partners of the day

IV. Thank you

A warm thank you to the Produktionsallianz and Produktionsallianz Services for the invitation, and to Michelle Müntefering and Nora Pitschmann. The day was also supported by Filmförderungsanstalt FFA, FilmFernsehFonds Bayern, LEONINE Studios, SKW Schwarz and Filmfest München. We will be back next year.

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