(SPOILER coming in the FOURTH paragraph, before and after that, you're safe.) Being married to one of the crew members, I've had some first and second-hand insight to the working conditions for this movie over the years - quite special in this one aspect. Ainoa started out as an idea for a script of the director's. Actually, he started filming or "making his own movies" as a teenager, experimenting with his dad's VC. He took up studying arts and film, as a vocation, specializing in directing. He also started writing the script all by himself, discussing his ideas with friends, only getting some help with it by some people working in this line, late in the production.
Total Budget: NIL. Consequently, each and every member of the crew, and that is including staff and actors, got NIL. The actors you see were trying to build up at reputation, and took a liking to being quite free to introduce their own ideas. Most of them were students. Or friends. As the credits indicate, film-related companies (costume shops, filming equipment companies and the like ) did of course give material for free. So, the Filming and Production Time, as it simply cannot be correctly reflected by the IMDb standards for an IMDb movie entry, was a total of 6 years, starting 1998. Post Production and SFX consumed another two years. Film making in Austria is something for people on a mission. Either you're part of a well-established establishment, or you're getting no funds at all. The script had to be adapted several times. Meaning, the director invested his own personal funds to have a couple of weeks shooting. We're talking here of numbers in the 3000 to 5000 USD range he had to cover all expenses for each shooting, as I heard. There were five of them, if my memory is correct. Post-Production took another two years - it's only then he got some funding, he finally found an able producer - and this guy finally found a distributor. ONLY THEN major Austrian companies were ready to add some minor money of their own, allowing him to complete the movie (adding some product placement, of course). Total Budget was a five-figure number in USD (I don't remember this exactly, sorry)
So why am I writing this down? In order to give you the right angle and perspective for a movie worth to watch: As an experiment in perfection, as far as your own studies may take you. Also, I won't hide the main weakness of the movie, which is in the script.
***SPOILER*** The first script contained a huge Action sequence, which was shot right at the start. Most people you see within the first odd-ten minutes of the film were extras - and either experienced Live RPGs', or members of a major local Vienna Paintball Shootout Club. The changes to the script didn't exclude the material from the movie, for it was too strong for that. However, watching this opening sequence gives you the impression: OK, this will develop into an action-flick. In total contrast to a quite slow development in the next 100+ minutes, that offer a psychological and philosophical study of the classical SciFi Theme of machine becoming man (woman, for instance) developing feelings, bonds, and affection. ***END SPOILER***
AINOA, seen in the right context - is an exceptional piece for a student to give for getting his degree - cum laude. Therefore, I give it a ten. If you expect a commercial movie, maybe you'd rather chose something else. And presumably it won't be one of your tens. But, if you're really into Sci-Fi, and Sci-Fi philosophical plots, give it a go. Cinematography, costumes, and acting are quite impressive. Dialogue is OK, it's just this big break in the script, right at the start. I don't know the English synchronization, I've been to the world Premiere in Vienna, which was held in German.