What students, partners and lecturers learned

Students left the lab with new competencies they could immediately use in their academic work, their creative processes and, for some, inside real newsrooms. The picture was remarkably consistent.

The Riga edition of the Film & AIdea Lab offered a rare insight into what young journalists need right now and what current media education is struggling to provide.

Based on interviews with three participating students, feedback from our Swedish partner, and evaluation meetings with lecturers from Denmark, Sweden, Latvia and the Belarussian lecturer.

Professional relevance and rapid skill transfer

All three interviewed students described how they applied AI tools from the lab directly into university assignments or work. A larger group of students before the workshop had even ended.

A participant from Delfi, the leading online newsroom in the Baltics, shared that her experience with AI-generated voice during the lab had already triggered internal discussions at Delfi about adopting new AI-software.

Creative facilitation an unexpected but essential skill

Especially the partner from Young Media in Sweden highlighted the value of learning to facilitate idea development, structure innovation processes and drive creative teamwork. Skills rarely taught in journalism programmes but central to editorial development, documentary production and investigative units.

The Swedish partner emphasised that facilitation was “the most important knowledge gap the lab filled”, and regretted that some international students did not immediately understand how relevant this is to journalism.

AI literacy that feels usable not abstract

Students praised the mix of AI-generated video, voice, images and text.
What mattered was not the novelty of the tools, but that they learned how to use them ethically, purposefully and in combination with critical thinking.

Groups who used the lab’s CustomGPTs delivered the strongest concepts, showing how customised AI can expand, rather than replace, human decision-making.

Intercultural learning and a broader ethical horizon

Working alongside peers from five countries deepened the students’ sense of journalistic responsibility. They recognised that synthetic media, AI disinformation and declining trust are shared global challenges. The intercultural aspect was described as “hugely valuable” and “one of the most inspiring elements” of the lab.

What educators learned

In follow-up conversations with lecturers from Denmark, Sweden, Latvia and Belarus, a shared picture emerged. The lab gave students something they do not normally encounter in their journalism programmes. They recognised that the combination of AI tools, creative problem-solving and structured facilitation pushed students into a more experimental, future-oriented way of working.

Recommendations for the next edition

Based on student and lecturer feedback, we will strengthen the following elements in future editions:

• A deeper introduction to prompting techniques, CustomGPTs and AI agents

• Sharing of students hand in documents during the lab for mutual inspiration

• A bit more grounding theory for students who want additional context

• A clearer framing of the design thinking elements even before the lab begins

• A speaker lineup with with more debate afterwards

These adjustments will refine the experience but do not change the core finding: The young journalists from the lab are not just preparing for the times of AI. They have begun shaping it.