Marco Gentile Keynote Speaker

Film & Advertising Director | Storytelling, Imagination Governance and Trust in the Age of AI
Award-Winning Director Behind Global Campaigns for BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Meta & Coca-Cola
Cannes Lions Silver Lion Winner

Marco Gentile's Biography

Marco Gentile is an Italian-born film and advertising director working globally, known for his cinematic approach to commercial storytelling and large-scale brand communication.

Marco gained early international recognition as a director, winning multiple awards including a Silver Lion at the Cannes Lions. He is a Fulbright Scholar and holds a Master’s degree in Film and Media Arts from Emerson College in Boston, as well as a degree in Political Science.

Over the course of his career, Marco has directed campaigns for leading global brands including BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Adidas, Vodafone, Toyota, Meta, Lexus, Coca-Cola, Wells Fargo, Nissan, Volvo and Orange, among others, developing a reputation for combining European cinematic language with high-level international production execution. He spent several years on the director roster at Ridley Scott Associates in Los Angeles, working across major international projects.

Alongside his directing practice, Marco develops live talks exploring how storytelling, trust and imagination are evolving as artificial intelligence reshapes creative and communication processes. Drawing from advertising, cinema, philosophy and cultural analysis, his work examines how meaning, authorship and audience trust are constructed in an increasingly automated media environment. He introduces a strategic lens for organisations: the governance of imagination — how to automate execution without delegating authorship, preserve human symbolic decision-making where meaning is defined, and maintain trust in the age of generative systems.

Marco is currently developing a television series and his first feature film, while continuing to direct international campaigns and speak on storytelling, culture and the future of communication.

His speaking work is designed for leadership forums, corporate audiences, cultural institutions, and global conferences interested in the future of storytelling, the cultural impact of AI, and the role of imagination as a strategic capability for organisations and brands operating in complex technological environments.

The Governance of Imagination

Trust, authorship and responsibility in the age of AI

As artificial intelligence increasingly participates in cultural, creative and decision-making processes, organisations face a fundamental leadership challenge: who remains responsible for imagination?

This talk introduces the concept of imagination governance — the responsibility of leaders, brands and institutions to preserve human authorship where meaning, narrative direction and cultural impact are defined.

Drawing from global brand storytelling, cinema and cultural analysis, the session explores how trust is built when audiences know that behind every narrative there is still a visible human intention — and what is at risk when imagination becomes progressively delegated to automated systems.

The Invisible Contract

A reflective talk on storytelling, trust and responsibility in the age of AI

A reflective talk exploring the invisible cultural contract that connects creators, brands, institutions and audiences.

As artificial intelligence enters narrative production, the session examines how trust is built, maintained or broken when stories, images and meaning can increasingly be generated at scale.

Imagination, Freedom and the Future of Brand Storytelling

Why storytelling leadership matters in the age of AI

As artificial intelligence increasingly participates in creative production, brands face a deeper strategic question: how to preserve originality, trust and narrative freedom in a world of automated outputs.

Drawing from cinema and global advertising practice, this talk explores how imagination becomes a strategic leadership capability — and why the brands that protect it will define the next era of communication.

The Five Principles of Human-Led Imagination

Leadership Framework / Executive Session

A leadership framework for storytelling, trust and decision-making in the age of AI

As artificial intelligence increasingly participates in creative and strategic processes, organisations face a fundamental question: what must remain human?

This talk introduces the Five Principles of Human-Led Imagination, a cultural leadership framework developed from anthropology and years of work across global advertising, cinema and brand storytelling. Rather than focusing on technology itself, the framework explores how leaders, brands and creative organisations can preserve authorship, responsibility and narrative trust while working with intelligent systems.

The Five Principles offer leaders and creative teams a clear structure for protecting imagination as a strategic capability — and for ensuring that innovation strengthens, rather than replaces, human responsibility.

Why Book Marco Gentile as a speaker?

Marco Gentile is an award-winning film and advertising director who helps leadership teams and global brands understand how storytelling, trust and human imagination must evolve as artificial intelligence reshapes communication and decision-making. His talks introduce a strategic leadership perspective increasingly relevant to organisations today: the governance of imagination — how leaders and brands preserve human authorship, narrative responsibility and audience trust in an age of generative systems.

Real industry perspective
Speaks from inside the industries shaping global culture — cinema, advertising, brand storytelling and large-scale media production — not from a purely academic or theoretical standpoint.

Trusted by global brands
Has directed campaigns for leading international companies including automotive, technology and consumer brands, working at the intersection of storytelling, strategy and large-scale communication.

Award-winning creative leadership
Internationally recognised, including a Silver Lion at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, with decades of experience leading complex creative productions across multiple markets.

A strategic lens on AI and communication
Helps organisations understand how artificial intelligence is transforming not only production processes, but the foundations of trust, authorship and brand meaning.

Actionable leadership frameworks
Introduces practical principles that leadership teams, creative organisations and brands can apply to preserve human-led imagination, narrative clarity and long-term audience trust in the age of intelligent systems.