The Carl Laemmle Institut (CLI) consolidates the research and development activities of Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg GmbH (FABW) into a centrally embedded research and development department and serves as a key interface between education, applied research, and industry partnerships. The institute – headed by Prof. Volker Helzle – emerges from the former research and development department of FABW’s Animationsinstitut and advances its work structurally, conceptually, and strategically.
 
The institute’s research fields include, among others, Virtual Production methods, Extended Reality, AI-supported creative and production processes, cross-innovation, new forms of human–machine interaction, as well as sustainable and resource-efficient production models for film, games, and immersive media.
 
With the naming of the institute, FABW deliberately connects to the legacy of Baden-Württemberg–born pioneer Carl Laemmle. In 1912, he founded the film studio Universal Pictures in Los Angeles, played a decisive role in the rise of Hollywood, and significantly shaped the international film industry. The reference to Laemmle stands for a spirit of innovation, visionary entrepreneurship, and the courage to create new structures for creative work. At the same time, it underscores the institute’s ambition to rethink film as a cultural, technological, and social force – with an international perspective and openness to radically new ideas.