S()fia Braga

S()fia Braga is an Italian Transmedia Artist and AI film director based in Vienna, whose work explores emerging technologies to create speculative narratives that engage with themes such as human and non-human collaboration, non-human agency and transhumanism. Additionally, S()fia’s research examines the concept of “Interveillance,” revealing the hidden power dynamics embedded in the operational structures of centralized social media platforms and their sociological implications. In 2022, S()fia, in collaboration with AI system architect Onur Olgaç, began creating AI-generated movies, developing open-source workflows to run locally on their machines. Her debut film, “The Artificial Conjuring Circle,” was officially selected, screened, and nominated at numerous Media Art and Film Festivals worldwide, including Academy Award-qualifying events. Her film was the first AI-generated movie showcased at every festival where it appeared, marking a significant milestone in the integration of AI into artistic practice and the movie industry. The film also won the award for Best Experimental Animation. In recognition of her pioneering work, American artificial intelligence research organisation OpenAI selected S()fia as one of its first Alpha Artists, and she was honored with the AI in Art and Culture grant from the Austrian Federal Ministry for Art and Culture. She holds degrees in Visual Arts from the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna (BA, MA) and in Interface Cultures from the University of Art and Design in Linz (MA). Currently, she is a lecturer and co-curator for the “Human Rights in the Digital Age” curriculum at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna. Her work has garnered several honors, including the Kunstförderpreise der Stadt Linz (UNESCO city of Media Art) in the New Media Art category, the Content Vienna Award, the Bank Austria Studios Award, The AI in Art Grant as well as the Startstipendium für Medienkunst from the Austrian Federal Ministry for Art and Culture, among others. S()fia’s works have been featured at renowned institutions and events such as Haus der Kulturen der Welt (DE), Kunstforum Wien (AT), Ars Electronica Festival (AT), Xie Zilong Photography Museum (CN), Short Shorts & Asia Film Festival (JP), Rencontre Internationales (FR/DE), Schlossmuseum Linz (AT), Pinacoteca Albertina of Torino (IT), Deutsche Bank (IT), among others.