The 32nd Slamdance Film Festival announced the winners of their annual Sparky Awards in Audience and Jury categories for 2026. The festival also announced the recipient of their AGBO Fellowship from Slamdance alumni Joe and Anthony Russo, a curated Acting Award, and the third annual Summer Chastant Episodic Award. All winners were announced during the in-person awards ceremony on February 25th at the Egyptian Theater in Los Angeles, CA.
President and Co-Founder, Peter Baxter stated, “As the entertainment industry continues to face massive disruption, Slamdance in Los Angeles is proof that through event experiences you can still grow cinema and fill every seat in the house. Some might think celebrity culture remains the only way to do this but Slamdance has known for a long time that when it comes to recognizing talent, launching careers and attracting an audience a grassroots community can really do it themselves.”
Solidifying a strong foothold in the Los Angeles community, this year’s festival attendance grew 10% from 2025 and nearly every screening and event sold out this year including but not limited to Market Monday, Writers Day, and the Unstoppable panels.
A celebration of emerging filmmaking talent from around the world, this year’s lineup consisted of 141 films – 50 of which are World Premieres. The 2026 programming was selected from 10,000 submissions, 28% of which were submitted by LA area filmmakers, 50% were helmed by female, trans, and non-binary directors and 41.4% of this year’s films are by BIPOC creators. In addition, 9.7% of Slamdance’s program is made by creators with visible and non-visible disabilities. The full Slamdance lineup is still available online on the Slamdance Channel through March 6th.
The awards ceremony opened with remarks from Steve Kang, President of the Board of Public Works and Chief Film Liaison for the City of Los Angeles, who unveiled a new pilot program to make filming in the Los Angeles area more affordable. To help keep LA the entertainment capital of the world, the city will significantly reduce permit fees for low-impact productions applying through FilmLA, making them more budget-friendly at every level. The city will also expand access to iconic locations, including reopening the Los Angeles Central Library to productions of all sizes for the first time in a decade beginning in March, and lowering filming fees at the Griffith Observatory. The announcement was met with thunderous applause and support from the audience.
The AGBO Fellowship was awarded to Jiin Oh for SPEEDY! which takes place in Seoul, 1989. SPEEDY! follows Jung-min who wants to become a speed-reading prodigy, just like Dong-hyun—the coolest guy in town, who can finish an entire book in just 60 seconds!
Esteemed auteurs and industry professionals voted to determine the Slamdance Jury Awards which are given to films and filmmakers in ten categories: Narrative Features, Documentary Features, Breakout Features, Unstoppable, Animated Shorts, Experimental Shorts, Narrative Shorts, Documentary Shorts, Episodes, and 99 Special.
Now in its third year, the Summer Chastant Episodic Award honoring her storytelling legacy was awarded to Cat & Nat by Aaron Hughes.
The Narrative Feature Grand Jury prize was awarded to Whisperings Of The Moon directed by Yuqing Lai, with an Honorable Mention given to TEN WILL directed by Max Defalco. The jury stated: “Whisperings of the Moon is a dizzying love story between two star-crossed Cambodian women who meet through the art of theater. The haunting performances and visceral imagery will burrow its way into your soul. We have lost the writer-director Yuqing Lai too soon — an irreplaceable voice in filmmaking”.
The Breakouts Feature Grand Jury Prize was awarded to Zumeca directed by David Maler, with an Honorable Mention given to BRB directed by Kate Cobb. The jury stated: “Through the eyes of a cross-cultural love story set in pre-colonial times, Zumeca feels dug up from the earth, the result being a poetic, unflinching exploration of our tribal origins. David Maler proves to be a singular new vision in global cinema.”
The Documentary Feature Grand Jury Prize was awarded to Silver directed by Natalia Koniarz, with an Honorable Mention given to House 4 directed by Philipp Schaeffer. The jury stated: “We want to acknowledge and honor the immense risks that were taken to make this film. Silver is a harrowing meditation into the silver mines of Potosí — and the ripple effects that fall thereafter”.
The 2025 Slamdance Unstoppable Feature Grand Jury Prize was awarded to You Look Fine directed by J. Snow, with an Honorable Mention given to The Tallest Dwarf directed by Julie Forrest Wyman. The jury stated:”They say it’s better to ask for forgiveness than permission, and this winner doesn’t ask for either but instead grabs our attention and gives us what we might not have even known we needed: a vulnerable look inside the complex life of a person with a type of pain too often overlooked and oversimplified. For showing us that behind the laughter there is sometimes pain, and on the other side of that pain is joy again: You Look Fine.”
The Slamdance Unstoppable Short Grand Jury Prize was awarded to Everhand directed by Shane Hillier, with an Honorable Mention given to Girl Of Wind directed by Nanxi Yuan The jury stated: “Less is more. Show don’t tell. We’ve all heard this advice, but so rarely do we actually see the fundamentals of filmmaking in action. This winner encapsulates the core of what makes cinema effective and fun, a simple and straightforward choice: Everhand.”
The 2024 Episodes Grand Jury Prize was awarded to Vicky Wakes Up directed by Victoria Blade, with an Honorable Mention given to Cat & Nat directed by Aaron Hughes. The jury stated: “Vicky Wakes Up seamlessly blends an engrossing and hilarious premise with deeper messages about sexism in the workplace, the need for dreams to be pursued, and the power of positivity in callous times.”
The 2024 Narrative Shorts Grand Jury Prize was awarded to Beaks directed by Xavier Demoulin, with an Honorable Mention given to It Means Hope directed by Shadi Karamroudi. The jury stated: “Beaks is a dynamic and engrossing journey that explores themes of grief, loss and difficulty of moving on. Framed as a story that takes place in the world of semi-legal cockfighting. Beaks is so much more than you initially expect. It is beautifully shot, expertly and masterfully directed, that the sound design and score lend peril to the short’s fight sequences and serenity to the story’s outcome – topped off by exceptional performances from an incredible cast.”
The Documentary Short Grand Jury Prize was awarded to Panther Pat directed by Ashley Brandon, with an Honorable Mention given to In Exchange For Flesh directed by Sandro Ramani and Corey Devon Arthur. The jury stated: “The jury praised Panther Pat for being highly inventive, using archival and stop motion animation to great effect, and we were shocked that a story this compelling had flown under the radar until now.”
The Experimental Short Grand Jury Prize was awarded to I Would Have Liked To Make A Different Film directed by Suse Itzel, with an Honorable Mention given to Whose Woods Are These directed by Kate Nartker. The jury stated: “A heartbreaking meditation that never lost our attention. This vulnerable piece earns its runtime and allows us to enter the filmmaker’s space in a completely empathetic way. An amazing use of ordinary, everyday scenarios and turning them into something meaningful and filled with memory.”
The Animated Shorts Grand Jury prize was awarded to Busy Bodies directed by Kate Renshaw-Lewis, with an Honorable Mention given to One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six directed by Yingdan LaI. The jury stated: “For its unique style of tactile animation that delightfully spirals out of control, its capturing sound design, and subversive wit, the animated shorts grand jury prize goes to Busy Bodies.”
The 99 Special Jury Prize was awarded to Dead Grandma directed by Rachel Kempf and Nick Toti, with an Honorable Mention given to Pickup directed by Viktoriia Lapushkina. The jury stated: “This was an exceptionally clever use of 99 seconds. It felt emotionally impactful, while remaining perfectly calibrated to its duration. The decision to shoot on film added texture and depth to the storytelling and punchline. A great balance between comedy and tragedy!”
In partnership with Slamdance, Utopia, the award-winning independent studio, has offered a traditional theatrical distribution deal to You Look Fine directed by J. Snow. In addition, all competition films will receive access to Utopia’s technology suite including Powerflix and Altavod which offers aggregation and bespoke digital distribution opportunities, and a one year free membership to Scriptation.
The first five 2026 Slamdance Festival films who are offered a distribution agreement will receive a $1,500.00 credit on legal services provided by Pessah Law Group.
The George Starks Spirit of Slamdance Award, voted on by filmmakers and given to the filmmaker who best embodies the spirit of the Festival, went to Jalen Wilson-Nelen for Puke Bitch. The festival’s Outstanding Acting Award, which is curated by the Slamdance team, went to Angela Canó for Zumeca.
The 2025 Audience Awards, voted on by Slamdance attendees went to narrative feature Three Colors: Pan-African directed by Elijah Davis, Allison A. Waite, and Tyler Ocasio Holmes, documentary feature Kings of Venice directed by Sveinn Ingimundarson and S.D. Saltarelli, and Unstoppable feature You Look Fine directed by J. Snow.
All films selected in the Narrative Features and Documentary Features competition categories are directorial debuts without U.S. distribution, with budgets of less than $1 million USD – a feature that has been unique to the festival since its founding in 1995. This year’s lineup consisted of titles from over 50 countries, including Australia, Brazil, Democratic Republic of Congo, Iceland, Iran, Palestine, Spain, Sudan, and Vietnam among others.
In addition to the Sparky’s, sponsored prizes for award winners were provided by Scriptation, Pessah Law Group, Boyd Chastant, AGBO and Utopia.
A full list of winners is below:
GRAND JURY AWARDS – FEATURES
Narrative Feature Grand Jury Prize: Whisperings of the Moon (Yuqing Lai, Hong Kong, Cambodia, India)
Honorable Mention: TEN WILL (Max DeFalco, United States)
Documentary Feature Grand Jury Prize: Silver (Natalia Koniarz, Poland, Norway, Finland)
Honorable Mention: House 4 (Philipp Schaeffer, Germany)
Breakouts Feature Grand Jury Prize: Zumeca (David Maler, Dominican Republic)
Honorable Mention: BRB (Kate Cobb, United States)
Episodes Grand Jury Prize: Vicky Wakes Up (Victoria Blade, United States)
Honorable Mention: Cat & Nat (Aaron Hughes, United States)
GRAND JURY AWARDS – UNSTOPPABLE
Unstoppable Feature Grand Jury Prize: You Look Fine (J.Snow, United States)
Honorable Mention: The Tallest Dwarf (Julie Forrest Wyman, United States)
Unstoppable Short Grand Jury Prize: Everhand (Shane Hillier, United States)
Honorable Mention: Girl of Wind (Nanxi Yuan, China)
JURY AWARDS – 99 Special
99 Special Jury Award: Dead Grandma (Rachel Kempf & Nick Toti, United States)
Honorable Mention: Pickup (Viktoriia Lapushkina, Russia, United States)
JURY AWARDS – SHORTS
Narrative Short Grand Jury Prize: Beaks (Xavier Demoulin, France)
Honorable Mention: It Means Hope (Shadi Karamroudi, Iran)
Documentary Short Grand Jury Prize: Panther Pat (Ashley Brandon, United States)
Honorable Mention: In Exchange For Flesh (Sandro Ramani and Corey Devon Arthur, United States)
Experimental Shorts Grand Jury Prize: I would have liked to make a different film (Suse Itzel, Germany)
Honorable Mention: Whose Woods Are These (Kate Nartker, United States)
Animated Shorts Grand Jury Prize: Busy Bodies (Kate Renshaw-Lewis, United States)
Honorable Mention: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six (Yingdan Lai, United States)
FESTIVAL WIDE AWARDS:
The AGBO Fellowship, presented by Joe and Anthony Russo, Award Winner: Jiin OH director of SPEEDY!
Summer Chastant Episodic Award: Cat & Nat (Aaron Hughes, United States)
Slamdance Acting Award: Angela Canó from Zumeca
George Starks Spirit of Slamdance Award Winner: Jalen Wilson-Nelen director of Puke Bitch
AUDIENCE AWARDS:
Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature: Three Colors: Pan-African (Elijah Davis, Allison A. Waite, Tyler Ocasio Holmes, USA)
Audience Award for Documentary Feature: Kings Of Venice (Sveinn Ingimundarson, S.D. Saltarelli, USA)
Audience Award for Unstoppable: You Look Fine (J. Snow, USA)
Photos from this year’s winners can be accessed here once available. Photo credit: Lauren Desberg.
