The Threshold

GENRES:

Drama, Poetic Cinema, Auteur Cinema

YEAR OF PRODUCTION:

August, 2025

LANGUAGE:

English

RUNTIME:

8 minutes

PRODUCTION / DISTRIBUTION:

A1GEN01 Labs 2025 | Ⓒ Jacek Kadaj

CAST:

logline

After two decades of silence, a daughter returns to face the parent she once knew as her father. In the stillness of a cramped apartment, every glance, every pause, becomes a fragile bridge between love, loss, and the truth that can no longer be hidden

synopsis

After twenty years of silence, Sophie meets with her mother Eva – a person who was once her father. This intimate encounter in the stuffy apartment of a ruined tenement becomes a confrontation with the past, pain, and questions about abandonment and acceptance. The film, in the convention of poetic auteur cinema, constitutes a technological and artistic experiment – generative AI tools have replaced the physical film camera here, capturing the world and emotions of the protagonists. It is a story about silence that can scream, and about a moment when one unexpected event can change everything, revealing a truth more painful than years of separation.

trailer

Film Teaser

A behind-the-scenes teaser

Interview

A Conversation with the Director

movie

The Threshold

Generative AI Short Film

awards

The Threshold has been officially selected and honored at international film festivals.

Honorable Mention & Nominations

Official Selections

Eastern Europe Film Festival 2025 – Honorable Mention (Best Short Film) | Reale Film Festival 2025 – Nominee (Best Experimental Film) | NYIFA 2025 – August 2025 – Finalist (Best AI Film) | Golden Bridge İstanbul Short Film Festival – Finalist 2025 ( Best Experimental Film) | AI Film Awards Venice 2025 – Honorable Mention (AI Long Film) | Amsterdam New Cinema Film Festival – August 2025 – Honorable Mention (Best AI-generated Short Film) | Folkestone Film Festival 2025 – Honorable Mention (Best Short Film) | Golden Dunes Dubai International Film Festival 2025 – Nominee (Best Ai-short film) | AI Film Festival Japan 2025 (Semi Finalist) | Big Syn International Film Festival, London 2025 – Nominee (AI Films)

credits

Written, Directed and AI-Generated by Jacek Kadaj

Jacek Kadaj is a Warsaw-based filmmaker, photographer, and AI artist with over 30 years of experience in traditional cinema. Trained as a cinematographer, he has collaborated with National Geographic and Getty Images, earned numerous photography awards, and presented his work in international exhibitions. In recent years, he has embraced generative AI as a new creative lens, producing award-winning AI films that blend poetic imagery with emotional depth. His work seeks to explore whether technology can capture — and even amplify — the fragility, tension, and beauty of human stories.

Director's statement

The AI becomes our camera into the soul. It allows us to capture the micro-expressions, the weight of silence, and the textures of memory with a unique, almost poetic precision. This project aims to prove that technology is not a barrier to emotion but a new doorway to understanding it. We are crossing a threshold not only in the story but also in the art of filmmaking itself.

The Threshold is about that single, terrifying moment of hesitation before a door opens. It’s about the silent space between past and future, where forgiveness is possible, but not guaranteed.

the feature film vision

The Threshold is being adapted into a feature-length psychological thriller. This project utilizes a groundbreaking hybrid production model, blending visceral Live-Action performances with immersive Generative AI visuals. Looking for Co-production & Financing.

photos