The Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) today announced the award winners for the 29th-annual SCAD Savannah Film Festival. A key stop on the festival circuit leading up to the Academy Awards, the 2026 SCAD Savannah Film Festival screened 162 films, including 57 fiction feature films, 14 documentary feature films, 85 short films, and 7 world premieres and 6 U.S. premieres.
“You Can See Everything” was this year’s Audience Award Winner, as selected by festival attendees. Directors Nathan Felder & Lance Oppenheim were in attendance for the sold-out screening. “Wildwood” was the runner-up, with director Travis Knight in attendance. Additionally, “La Bola Negra” was this year’s International Audience Award Winner. Actor Guitarricadelafuente was in attendance for the screening, where he received the Discovery Award.
Out of over 2,300 submissions, 15 awards were announced from the 95 films chosen to compete in competition categories, which included Fiction Features, Documentary Features, as well as Live Action Shorts, Documentary Shorts, Animated Shorts, Student Live Action, Documentary, and Animated Shorts, all arranged in 13 different themed blocks.
Professional Competition
- Best Live Action Short—”Them That’s Not”, dir. Mekhai Lee
- Best Documentary Short—”Plant Life”, dirs. Brett Marty, Josh Izenberg
- Best Animated Short—”9 Million Colors”, dir. Bára Anna
- Best Fiction Feature—”The Huntress”, dir. Suzanne Andrews Correa
- Best Documentary Feature—”The Secret Reading Club of Kabul”, dirs. Shakiba Adil, Elina Hirvonen
- Best Director, Fiction Feature—Carlitos Ruiz-Ruiz, “Summer of Three”
- Best Directors, Live Action Short—Gus Flind-Henry, George Malcher, “A Sisyphean Task”
This year’s Best Live Action Short “Them That’s Not,” Documentary Short “Plant Life,” and Animated Short “9 Million Colors” will each receive a $500 cash prize sponsored by Southern Motors Family.
This year’s Best Fiction Feature “The Huntress” and Documentary Feature “The Secret Reading Club of Kabul” will each receive a $1,000 cash prize sponsored by Southern Motors Family.
Honorable Mention Jury Awards
The Fiction Feature Jury awarded the Valiant Cinema Award to writer, actor, and producer Brock Yurich from “Test” for courageous storytelling, vulnerable yet bold acting, and the determination to share such a unique and important film with audiences.
The Live Action Short Jury awarded a Jury Award for Excellence in Performance to “Callback,” dir. Matthew Puccini.
The Documentary Short Jury awarded a Special Jury Award to “The Baddest Speechwriter of Them All” (dirs. Stephen Curry, Ben Proudfoot) for Illustrative Excellence.
The Documentary Short Jury also awarded “The Making of Taylor Square” an Honorable Mention for Community Spirit.
The 2026 Documentary Features jury members included Andy Cohen (Producer), Juliet Blake (Film & TV Producer) and June Dowad (Writer/Producer).
The 2026 festival’s Fiction Features jury members included Alan Khamoui (Sr. Film Executive of Development, Production and Acquisitions, Amazon MGM Studios), Giulia Prenna (Producer and Int’l Sales Agent), and Seth Fradkoff (MGM).
Katie Spikes Legacy Award Scholarship
Katie Spikes was a senior story editor for CBS 60 Minutes and a beloved friend of the SCAD Savannah Film Festival for many years. After her passing in 2023, the Katie Spikes Legacy Scholarship was created to honor excellence in filmmaking by a SCAD student.
- Award Winner—”Nanmoku,” dir. Wil Franz (B.F.A., Film & Television, SCAD)
This year’s winner will receive a $5,000 cash prize. The 2026 festival’s Katie Spikes Legacy jury members include Alison Owen, Andy Cohen, Juliet Blake, June Dowad, Lynn Hirshfeld and Myra Scheer.
Student Live Action, Doc and Animated Shorts
- Best Student Animation—”Stone Lions Don’t Roar,” dir. Le Hang Whalen
- Best Student Short—”KATTI (unfriend),” dir. Kanishka Aggarwal
- Best Student Documentary Short—”Nanmoku,” dir. Wil Franz
This year’s Best Student Animation “Stone Lions Don’t Roar”, Best Student Documentary Short “Nanmoku” and Student Live Action Short “KATTI (unfriend)” will receive a cash prize of $500 each, sponsored by Southern Motors Family.
Honorable Mention Jury Awards – Student
The Student Shorts Jury awarded “With You,” dir. Rebecca Floto, a jury award for bold and courageous filmmaking.
The Katie Spikes Jury awarded “From the Sound to the Sea,” dir. Olivia Jackson, a jury award for Journalistic Integrity.
The 2026 festival’s Student Shorts jury members included Kaila York (Director), Mike McNamara (Sundance Programmer & Producer), and Sharon Badal (Tribeca Shorts).
The 2026 Animated Shorts jury members included Greg Sorvig (Heartland Film Festival & Indy Shorts), Joshua Beveridge (Sony Imageworks), and Susan Fitzer (WB Animation).
The 2026 Live Action Short jury members included Darrien Gipson (SAGindie), Sam Davis (Director, “The Singers”), and Sam Lansky (Journalist).
This year, the SCAD Savannah Film Festival honored Keanu Reeves (Legend of Cinema Award), Paul Bettany (Virtuoso Award), Gemma Chan (Lumiere Award), Emmy Rossum (Outstanding Achievement in Television Award), John Cho and Carrie Coon (Luminary Award), Rosalind Eleazar (Breakthrough Award), Guitarricadelafuente (Discovery Award), Jordan Firstman (Rising Star Director Award), James Gray (Auteur Award), Anthony Ippolito (Breakthrough Award), Kane Parsons (NextGen Director Award), Billie Piper (Marquee Award), Seth Rogen (Spotlight Award), Meghann Fahy (Spotlight in Television Award), Ethan Hawke and Sterlin Harjo (Outstanding Collaboration in Television Award), Helen Mirren (Legend of Entertainment Award), Julianne Moore (Icon Award), Emmy Rossum (Outstanding Achievement in Television Award), and production designer Patrice Vermette (Variety Creative Impact in Production Design Award).
Additionally, Entertainment Weekly presented their Breaking Big Awards, which included honorees Adia (“Your Mother, Your Mother, Your Mother“), India Amartiefio (“Clarissa“), Jalen Thomas Brooks (“Off Campus”), Skyler Gisondo (“Primetime“), Tom Rhys Harries (“Clayface“), and Summer H Howell (“Carrie“).
What do you think of this announcement for the 2026 SCAD Savannah Film Festival? Please let us know your thoughts in the comments section below or on our X account.
