Watch the livestream on Twitch: https://twitch.tv/escapeaimedia

Or join us in the virtual theater and creator club, here on escape.ai

Doors open at 11am PT

The [ esc ] Awards return for their second year—a one-of-a-kind celebration honoring the people shaping the future of storytelling in generative AI, emergent media, animation, and game-engine filmmaking.

Unlike traditional awards shows that spotlight individual films, The Escape Awards recognize the creators themselves—visionary artists, technologists, and studios whose body of work and creative ethic are redefining what’s possible in digital storytelling. These are the innovators pushing boundaries across cinema, immersive media, and interactive worlds.

Nominations and voting is open exclusively to creators on the escape.ai platform. Only creators with an active ESC Channel (at least one video uploaded) can nominate and vote for their peers—making this a true community-driven recognition of excellence.

Fans, creators, and guests are all invited to experience the celebration live:

- Join us online in the virtual Escape Theater for the main event

- Mingle with creators in the Creator Club before and after the show

- Watch the livestream from anywhere

The winners will be unveiled on March 13, 2026, during the Escape Awards broadcast (Pre-show at 11am PT, Main Show at 12pm PT).

PIONEER AWARD

Afro Futcha (Diane Laidlaw), BLVCKL!GHTai, Davide Bianca, Dustin Hollywood, Francesca Fini, Jeff Synthesized, Kavan the Kid, Nicolas Pomet, Particle Panic (Mark Wachholz), Uncanny Harry (Ryan Phillips)

ALCHEMIST AWARD

Afro Futcha (Diane Laidlaw), Billy Boman, Black Eye Media AB, BLVCKL!GHTai, Francesca Fini, Hooroo Jackson, Junie Lau, Paola Rocchetti, Peio Duhalde, Videostate (Jan-Willem Blom)

WORLD BUILDER AWARD

Aze Alter, Black Eye Media AB, BLVCKL!GHTai, Davide Bianca, Fredrik Jonsson, Giulio Fulchignoni, Jeff Synthesized, Kavan the Kid, Particle Panic (Mark Wachholz), Vander McLeod

CHARACTER AWARD

Afro Futcha (Diane Laidlaw), Davide Bianca, Edmond Yang, Floriane Bont, Kim Landers, Kavan the Kid, Particle Panic (Mark Wachholz), The Reel Robot (Dale Williams), TrashCanRoxanne (Roxanne Ducharme), Uncanny Harry (Ryan Phillips)

STORYTELLER AWARD

Ant Neely, Black Eye Media AB, Davide Bianca, Floriane Bont, Giulio Fulchignoni, Kavan the Kid, MetaPuppet, Particle Panic (Mark Wachholz), Ramin Noodle (Ramil Escarda), Stephane Benini

VISUALIST AWARD

Arlo, Dave Clark, Jeff Synthesized, Junie Lau, Kavan the Kid, László Gaál, Lion El Aton, Lisa Brunner, Peio Duhalde, techno_underworld

ARTISAN AWARD

Arlo, Benjamin Bardou, Dustin Hollywood, Erik Gen (Oliver Roeger), Junie Lau, Lisa Brunner, László Gaál, Matt Zien, Peio Duhalde, TrashCanRoxanne (Roxanne Ducharme)

NEOMATION AWARD

AIST (Andrew Tsytsenko), Contanimation (Javier De la Chica Soriano), Danny Tseng, Edit9 (Hal Watmough), Henry Daubrez, Jaiostudios, Mean Orange Cat, Mingdi Li, Nik Kleverov, SAV (Steffan Busser)

MASTER OF CRAFT AWARD

machina90000 (Daniil Volka), Dave Clark, Davide Bianca, Jeff Synthesized, Kavan the Kid, Lion El Aton, Matt Zien, MetaPuppet, Particle Panic (Mark Wachholz), The Reel Robot (Dale Williams)

VENTURER AWARD

Cédric Klapisch, Dave Clark / Promise, AI_Mov_Director (Volodymyr Kondratenko), Davide Bianca / GRAiL, Dustin Hollywood / Nakid, Kavan the Kid / Phantom X, Lion El Aton / Film Crux, Stephane Benini, Storybook Studios, Verena Puhm

ORBITAL AWARD

Dorian & Daniel, Faith Cho, Gossip Goblin (Zack London), Guillermo Castellanos, Jiaze Li, Jonny Ashcroft, Léo Cannone, Neural Viz, PsyopAnime, Rodson Suarez