Runway launches The Hundred Film Fund to finance AI movies

Runway is putting real money behind the films made with its tools.

The AI video startup just announced The Hundred Film Fund, a program designed to bankroll professional creators making AI-augmented film projects.

Big grants, free compute, and Hollywood royalty

The fund currently sits at $5 million, with plans to grow up to $10 million. Grants range anywhere from $5,000 to over $1 million per project, alongside an additional $2 million in Runway platform credits.

Submissions are open across virtually all formats, including feature films, shorts, documentaries, experimental pieces, and music videos. The only core requirement is that the project leverages AI during pre-production or post-production phases.

Runway also tapped heavy-hitting industry veterans for its advisory panel. The roster includes Tribeca Festival cofounder Jane Rosenthal, Company 3 founder Stefan Sonnenfeld, Television Academy governor Christina Lee Storm, will.i.am, and Nvidia media VP Richard Kerris, who will help mentor creators and co-produce select titles.

Why it matters

AI video can easily churn out jaw-dropping five-second clips on social media, but skeptics still question whether it can carry a coherent, feature-length narrative.

We think Runway's move is clever. Instead of building self-indulgent internal tech demos, the company is subsidizing actual Hollywood-caliber directors and editors to stress-test its tools in real production workflows.

Surrounding the initiative with mainstream film royalty is also a shrewd political move. By inviting respected producers and festival heads into the tent, Runway is softening Hollywood's deep anxieties around AI and attempting to frame its models as creative amplifiers rather than replacement workers.