Palm Springs International Shortfest Unveils 2026 Winners

The Palm Springs International Shortfest has unveiled its winners for 2026. The winners were announced at Sunday’s award ceremony. Honorees receieved $30,000 dollars in cash prizes, and five films were presented with Academy Award qualifying awards.

See the list of winners below:

Oscar-Qualifying Awards:
The winner of these awards may be eligible to submit their short to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for Oscar® consideration.

Best of the Festival Award — Winner received $5,000 cash prize.
Jury: Dana Ledoux Miller (Moana 2); Gus Van Sant; Julia Aks (Jane Austen’s Period Drama); Kayla Foster (Your Monster)

Winner: Fruit (Singapore), Directed by Jen Nee Lim
Special Mention: Hyena (USA/China), Directed by Altay Ulan Yang

Best Animated Short — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: John Kelly (Director at Dolphin’s Barn Pictures); Wilson Chapman (Animation Editor at IndieWire); William D. Caballero (Director/Producer at Colibri Creative Media)

Winner: Fačuk (Croatia/Slovenia), Directed by Maida Srabović
Special Mention for Craft: Venezia Diorama (Belgium), Directed by Nicolas Piret

Best Documentary Short — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Ash Cook (Founder, Video Store•Age); Micah Gottlieb (Artistic Director at Los Angeles Festival of Movies); Rebekah Louisa Smith (Film Festival Strategist at The Film Festival Doctor)

Winner: Water Cooler (USA), Directed by Emma V.F.
Special Mention: Plumped (USA), Directed by Faye Tsakas, Nora DeLigter

Best Live-Action Short Over 15 Minutes — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Jesy Odio (Production Manager at FUJIFILM); Maura Towey (Director of Development at Love & Squalor Pictures); Talia Shea Levin (Director, Writer, Producer)

Winner: Marga en el DF (Mexico/USA/Dominican Republic), Directed by Gabriela Ortega
Special Mention: Concrete Kids (Lithuania), Directed by Saulius Baradinska

Best Live-Action Short 15 Minutes and Under (Sponsored by SAGindie) — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Alana Ford (Agent at Gersh); Mia McNiece (Senior Editor, News and Awards at Gold Derby); Peter Van Steemburg (Talent Manager at XYZ Films)

Winner: We Were Here (India), Directed by Pranav Bhasin
Special Mention: Captive Audience (Singapore), Directed by Kew Lin

Student Short Awards:

Best Student International Short — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Adam Keresztes (Lead Shorts Programmer at Calgary International Film Festival); Séverine Tibi (Co-Founder, Producer at Sevana Films); Zegan Doyle (Programmer at AQUA Film Club, SXSW, Film Independent)

Winner: Daddy’s Little Meatball (Australia/USA), Directed by Yael Grunseit
Special Mention: Orla (Czech Republic/Slovakia) , Directed by Marie Lukáčová

Best Student U.S. Short, Best Student Animated Short & Best Student Documentary Short — Each winner received a $1000 cash prize, ties split
Jury: Ambriehl Turrentine (Programming Manager at Denver Film); Edda Manriquez (Program Director, Femtastia Fest); Noah Baldwin (Executive Assistant/Internship Coordinator at Tremolo Productions)

Student U.S. Short:
Winner: Pankaja (USA/India), Directed by Anooya Swamy
Special Mention: Not Valid for Travel (USA), Directed by Jiaying Lin

Student Animated Short:
Winner: The Undying Pain of Existence (Germany), Directed by Oscar Jacobson
Special Mention: Hunting (Switzerland), Directed by Lea Favre

Student Documentary Short:
Winner: Sole (USA), Directed by Haneol Lee
Special Mention: California is Burning (USA), Directed by Bennett Curran

Special Jury Awards:

Vimeo Staff Pick Award — Winner received a $5,000 cash prize provided by Vimeo

Winner: A Crime Across Four Landscapes (USA), Directed by Aidan Weaver

Best International Short — Each winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Ernie Quiroz (Film Programmer Santa Barbara, the Loft, Phoenix Art Museum); Irene Suico Soriano (Short Film Programmer at Sundance Film Festival); Eleanor Wilson (Writer/Director)

Winners: Agapito (Philippines/France), Directed by Arvin Belarmino and Kyla Romero
Special Mention: The Last Song (Spain), Directed by María Lorente-Becerra

Best U.S. Short — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Steven Snyder (Producer at Cienega Films); Hayley Marie Norman (Filmmaker); Daniel Cardone (Senior Manager, Nonfiction Programs & Fiscal Sponsorship at Film Independent)

Winner: See You, Soon (USA), Directed by Jay Pendarvis Jr.
Special Mention for Linus the dog: XOLO (USA), Directed by Matthew Serrano

Best Comedy Short — Each winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Max Geschwind (Media Finance Coordinator at CAA); Rika Dharmesh Bhakta (Independent Producer); Alex Huston Fischer (Writer/Director).

Winners: We Were Here (India), Directed by Pranav Bhasin
Special Mention for Ensemble: Borderline (Norway/Finland/Sweden), Directed by Johannes Vang

Best LGBTQ+ Short — Each winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Abby Wright (Founder/Festival Director at Femme Filth Fest); Dino-Ray Ramos (Founder, Diaspora); Ro Haber (Director)

Winners: Delay (China), Directed by Wang Han-Xuan
Special Mention: Sandra (Brazil), Directed by Camila Márdila

Best Midnight Short — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Ashleigh Snead (Producer); Pip Ngo (EVP of Sales and Acquisitions at XYZ Films); Yulissa Morales (VP of Distribution and Creative at Epic Pictures | Dread)

Winner: Hyena (USA/China), Directed by Altay Ulan Yang
Special Mention: Flock (United Kingdom/Wales), Directed by Mac Nixon

Local Jury Awards:

Desert Views Local Jury Award—Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Kendall Balchan​, Yvonne Buchanan​, Craig Canestrari​, Valerie Fury​, Elizabeth Reyes

Winner: Agapito (Philippines/France), Directed by Arvin Belarmino and Kyla Romero
Special Mention: The Barbershop (Denmark), Directed by Diêm Camille

Young Cineastes Award—Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: Carolina Ava Hyatt​, Lillian Lorraine Lynd​, Bethany Mikrut

Winner: La Tierra del Valor (The Home of the Brave) (USA), Directed by Cristina Costantini
Special Mention: Guardian’s Grove (USA), Directed by Rachel Moss

Kids’ Choice Award — Winner received a $1,000 cash prize.
Jury: The Boys and Girls Club of Cathedral City

Winner: Four Square (USA), Directed by Eli Staub

FRIDAY, JUNE 26

Spike Lee’s ‘School Daze’ to Kick off IndieCollect’s ‘Declaration of Independents!’ Film Festival

IndieCollect is set to host a nine-day film festival titled “Declaration of Independents!” at the IFC Center in New York City. Opening July 1 with Spike Lee presenting his film “School Daze,” the series showcases 20 films spanning 1979-89 and aims to honor indie filmmakers who re-shaped the depiction of America in cinema.

Lee will also attend a post-screening conversation conducted by Ashley Clark, Criterion Collection’s curatorial director and author of “The World of Black Film.”

Directors Charlie Ahearn (“Wild Style”), Lizzie Borden (“Born In Flames”), Aarin Burch (“Dreams Of Passion”), Bette Gordon (“Variety”), Paula de Koenigsberg & Lucy Winer (“Rate It X”), Jim Klein (“Seeing Red”), and Fran Kuzui (“Tokyo Pop”) will also present their films in person. “El Super,” by the late Leon Ichaso, will be introduced by producer/co-writer Manuel Arce. “Cane River,” by the late Horace Jenkins, will be introduced by his daughter, Dominique Jenkins. 

Every film will be shown twice, and a free printed catalog will be available gratis to audiences. The complete schedule and tickets are available at ifccenter.com.

‘Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother’ With Mahershala Ali Releases Teaser Trailer

“Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother” has released its official teaser trailer.

The film’s official logline reads, “From writer-director Bassam Tariq, ‘Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother’ stars Mahershala Ali as Latif, a devoutly religious hitman who struggles to balance work, faith and fatherhood. When his wife dies, he embarks on a desperate journey across Houston to protect his children, confronting the forces closing in around him – and the beliefs threatening to unravel within.”

The cast also includes John Cho, Abubakr Ali, Laith Nakli, Tramell Tillman, Tiffany Boone, Giancarlo Esposito, Adia and Jaheel Kamara.

The movie will release in select theaters Sept. 25 and theaters everywhere in October. Bassam Tariq serves as writer and director, and Brian O’Neill as executive producer. Lucan Toh, p.g.a., Babak Anvari and Bassam Tariq, p.g.a, are producing.

Watch the teaser trailer below.

Tom Cruise Celebrates 46 Years in Movies With Retrospective Clip Featuring New ‘Digger’ Footage

Tom Cruise’s love for cinema has been well-documented — from his high-stakes stunts promoting the “Mission: Impossible” movies to his trips to the theater to support the latest blockbusters like Steven Spielberg’s “Disclosure Day,” Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners” and the pop culture phenomenon known as “Barbenheimer.”

But there’s no greater evidence of Cruise’s love of the art form than the varied roles he’s played over the years.

On Tuesday, the movie star posted a retrospective clip spotlighting some of his greatest roles, from action-packed blockbusters like “Top Gun” and “Edge of Tomorrow,” to his dramatic turns in “Rain Man” and “Born on the Fourth of July,” and crowd-pleasing classics like “Risky Business” and “Jerry Maguire.”

“For the last 46 years, it has been my privilege to work alongside countless talented artists and crews to create these characters, stories, and films for you all,” Cruise wrote in the caption of his post. “I’m looking forward to seeing you at the movies!”

The clip ends with a sneak peek at Cruise’s latest film, “Digger,” from filmmaker Alejandro G. Iñárritu, which features one of his greatest transformations yet — to become Digger Rockwell.

Cruise sports a thick Southern accent, a beer belly and thinning white hair (fashioned in an unconvincing combover) to play the oil baron whose company may have set off an ecological disaster that could also spark a nuclear war. John Goodman portrays an ailing U.S. president who implores Cruise’s character to fix the mess he’s unleashed. Riz Ahmed, Sandra Hüller, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Jesse Plemons also star in the Warner Bros. film, described as a “comedy of catastrophic proportions.”

The trailer for “Digger” will be released on July 13, with the film debuting in theaters on October 2.

Friday, June 25

Animated Short ‘Pigeons’ Releases Trailer and Poster

The animated short film, “Pigeons,” released its trailer and poster after screening at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival.

The 12-minute short follows a carrier pigeon whose job is replaced by a telephone. Andy Serkis narrates the film, with Dan Lund producing. The crew also includes Sergio Mancinelli as art director, Shane Harris as senior colorist and Peter Staubli as sound designer and re-recording mixer.

“Pigeons” was created in one year with no studio financing and features more than 170 hand-painted backgrounds. The film recently won Best Production Design at Animayo.

Watch the trailer below.

Thursday, June 25

AFI Silver Hosts Mel Brooks 100th Birthday Celebration

The American Film Institute (AFI) Silver in Silver Spring, Maryland, is celebrating comedian Mel Brooks’ 100th birthday by screening some of his greatest films this summer for Mel Brooks: The 100 Year Old Man.

“The Producers,” “Blazing Saddles,” “Young Frankenstein,” “High Anxiety,” “The Elephant Man,” “History of the World: Part 1,” “Spaceballs” and “The Critic” will all be available to watch on various dates from July 24 to September 10.

Brooks’ career stretched over 70 years and earned him EGOT status, working as a director and producer and acting on both stage and screen. Brooks also wrote for television series including “Your Show of Shows,” “Caesar’s Hour” and “Get Smart” and received the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2013.

Wednesday, June 24

‘How We Heal’ Film Lab Announces Inaugural Class of Filmmakers Exploring Themes of Racial Healing and Identity

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation is partnering with cultural strategy and impact firm ADISA to announce the 2026 awardees of the inaugural “How We Heal” Film Lab, designed to help upcoming filmmakers explore themes of racial healing, identity, belonging, resilience and community transformation.

Announced during Every Child Thrives Fest in Chicago, the 2026 “How We Heal” Film Lab awardees are Lanaa Dantzle, Jered Everson, Ty Kazy, Edward Nguyen, and Castel Sweet.

Developed by WKKF and produced in partnership with ADISA, the Film Lab aims to bring together emerging filmmakers and leading voices from across the entertainment industry for mentorship, creative development and community-building.

Mentors for the program included actor Gbenga Akinnagbe; Mika Pryce, Senior Vice President of Production at Paramount Pictures Motion Picture Group; writer-producer Nihaar Sinha; actress Djaka Souaré; and writer-director Zoey Martinson.

Projects were evaluated by a panel of judges that included film critic and writer Miriam Bale; former HBO Max executive Katie Soo, award-winning media executive Sophie Watts; social impact strategist Michael Skolnik; and Mikal Moore, Managing Director at Wondaland and longtime manager of Janelle Monáe. Additional supporters included actor Jesse Williams and producer Tonya Lewis Lee.

Nantucket Film Festival Announces 2026 Winners and New Series

The Nantucket Film Festival has announced its 2026 award winners and a new summer documentary series.

NFF Now: Summer Doc Series, presented in partnership with The Dreamland Theater, is a three-day series which will feature documentary films such as award-winning “Mighty Mary.” The event takes place August 25-27 and includes a conversation with filmmakers and special guests after the screening.

“Mighty Mary” won the Maria Mitchell Visionary Award at the 31st annual film festival.

The audience awards went to “Colors of Time,” “Yo (Love is a Rebellious Bird),” “We’re Kinda Different” and “One Last Order.”

“Colors of Time,” directed and co-written by Cédric Klapisch, along with Santiago Amigorena, took home the Audience Award for Narrative Feature. Anna Fitch and Banker White’s “Yo (Love is a Rebellious Bird)” won the Audience Award for Documentary Feature, and the Audience Award for Narrative Short Film was given to Ben Meinhardt’s “We’re Kinda Different.”

Lauren DeFilippo and Sam Soko’s “One Last Order” won the Audience Award for Documentary Short Film. The film follows a woman who works her last shift at a drive-through after 37 years and also won the Teen View Jury Award and the Grand Jury Prize for Documentary Storytelling in Short Film.

Additional winners include “Joybubbles” for the Adrienne Shell Foundation Excellence in Filmmaking Award and “Edie Arnold is a Loser” for the Children’s Resilience in Screenwriting Award.

Monday, June 22

Reboot Studios Announces Filmmaking Expansion Aimed to Uplift Jewish Storytelling

Reboot Studios, the production arm of the nonprofit Reboot co-founded by Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw, has announced an expansion into feature filmmaking with its 2026 Creator Fund slate, which spans narrative and documentary film, theater, audio, and interactive media.

Reboot Studios’ first original feature, “Juice Cleanse,” a horror-comedy about a Mizrahi Jewish girl recovering from an eating disorder, from director Shoshana Ehrenkranz and writer/producer Jonathan Mizrahi, will anchor the slate. The lineup also includes “Keeping Up with the Siegfrieds,” which explores the buried legacy of America’s largest Nazi movement.

Further additions to the lineup include short film “Saba,” about a boy and his grandfather living in a surreal world where gravity is reversed; “Father Figures,” a personal documentary about a daughter reconnecting with her emotionally distant father; and “Triple Mitzvah,” set during Rosh Hashanah, when a married lesbian couple invites an escort to spend the weekend with them.

Other titles include “Deadclass, Ohio,” which explores intergenerational memory and inherited trauma in a Jewish graveyard in suburban Ohio; “The Goldsmith,” about a first generation American through the stories of the golden jewelry passed down through her family, from Iraq to Israel to America; “Alef Bet,” a podcast that explores the evolving practices of Jewish life through the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet; and “Normandie,” a documentary video game that follows a salvage crew diving the wrecks of transatlantic liners after World War II.

Reboot Studios’ 2026 slate aims to respond to both creator demand and to a shifting media landscape in which it can help shape a new generation of Jewish storytelling.