Trieste Science+Fiction Festival, the Italian event devoted to science fiction scheduled from October 29th to November 3rd, has unveiled the poster for the 2024 edition: an original illustration created by cartoonist Michele Rech, aka Zerocalcare, one of the most beloved authors on the Italian and international comics scene.

The poster for the 24th edition of the Trieste festival illustrates the challenges and fears evoked by the advent of Generative Artificial Intelligence, a technology that is no longer just the future but also the present in which machines, for the first time, are able to create something as new and artistic as a written text or an illustration. In fact, the recent development of Artificial Intelligence is leading us toward a science fiction movie scenario: a Fourth Industrial Revolution that will cause profound social disruptions and economic changes, completely reconfiguring the world of work and thus society itself. A revolution that opens up new possibilities, but also raises fears and fears by ushering in new and unpredictable scenarios.

As Zerocalcare explains, “the poster tells the story of the distance between how I imagined science fiction as a kid and how my expectations have evolved: we used to think that in the future machines would do the alienating and exhausting jobs, leaving humans free to dedicate themselves to the arts. Today, quite the opposite, the evolution of artificial intelligence shows us a possible dystopia in which machines replace us in drawing and writing, while people continue to wake up in the morning to go to their worksite”.

Zerocalcare is one of the most beloved and acclaimed authors on the Italian and international comics scene. His books, with which he describes the fears of an entire generation, have been appreciated and printed all over the world. In recent years he has written, directed, and voiced two animated series produced for Netflix (Strappare lungo i bordi in 2021 and Questo mondo non mi renderà cattivo in 2023) that have received public and critical acclaim.

The 24th edition of the Trieste Science+Fiction Festival promises a packed schedule of events and film previews. Held at the Politeama Rossetti and Teatro Miela, this year’s festival will showcase the finest global science fiction productions, encompassing a spectrum from horror to classic sci-fi.

The most important science fiction festival, scheduled in Trieste from Oct. 29 to Nov. 3.