This All-Hallows Eve, Airheads tapped six filmmakers and this year’s hottest director—Artificial Intelligence—for the very first AI horror film genre festival, A.I.RHEADS SCAREFEST

“AI is such a hot topic and everyone loves a good scary flick on Halloween, so we thought why not try our luck in Hollywood this year,” said Craig Cuchra, VP of marketing at Perfetti Van Melle, maker of Airheads candy. “We’re excited to see what our fans think of the six films we’re screening and it will be fun to see how  Airheads fans play with AI and create their own spooky film with a little candy inspiration.”

Six selected filmmakers were tasked to create an AI-generated Halloween-themed film that incorporated the famous Airheads balloon in some way, shape or form. They were also instructed to include a balance of appropriate horror film scariness and humor. All six films are under three minutes long.

Anyone can watch and share their favorite A.I.RHEADS SCAREFEST film on the film festival website today through November 30 at midnight ET. Additionally, Airheads fans can try their hand at AI scary filmmaking and submit their short film for a chance to win a year's supply of Airheads candy and a $2,000 cash prize. All films must follow the same brief that the filmmakers used and the fan film with the most votes will win.

“I usually can’t watch horror films because they scare me too much and keep me up at night,” said Ronnie Allman, the filmmaker behind Sound Asleep. “Now, after making this short film for A.I.RHEADS SCAREFEST, I’m still up at night, spooked about how quickly I can use AI to bring my creative vision to life.”

To learn more about the A.I.RHEADS SCAREFEST, visit airheadsscarefest.com


Perfetti Van Melle is on the current Candy Industry “Global Top 100 Candy Companies” list. Click here to view the current “Global Top 100” rankings.