The Sony Future Filmmaker Awards, which aim to highlight outstanding original talents and help their film careers, have revealed the 2026 winners for their fourth annual edition.
Jack Hughes won the Fiction category with his film “Deadheading,” while Christine Seow and “Two Travelling Aunties” took home the prize for Non-Fiction. Additionally, Michelle Brøndum and Ida Melum won the Animation award with “Ovary-Acting,” and Ana A. Alpizar won the Student award for “Norheimsund.” The recipients were announced at a gala ceremony, alongside Innocent Yama Lamido’s “Creating Without Permission” being named the winner of the Future Format competition, which challenges filmmakers to respond to a technical brief that explores creative possibilities.
The winners were selected from a global shortlist of 30 films representing over 20 countries, drawn originally from more than 8,400 filmmakers across 162 countries and territories. The jury consisted of Golden Globe-nominated director and producer Will Gluck (“Anyone But You,” “Easy A”); producer and President of Film and Television at Pascal Pictures Rachel O’Connor (“Challengers,” “Spider-Man: No Way Home”); animation co-director Adam Rosette (“GOAT,” “The Wild Robot”); and jury chair and director Justin Chadwick (“Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom,” “The Other Boleyn Girl”).
Established by Creo and sponsored by Sony, the Awards aim to highlight outstanding original talents and launch them directly into the heart of the film industry. Winners and shortlisted filmmakers took part in an intensive four-day program at Sony Pictures Studios and participated in a curated program of workshops and masterclasses led by Sony Pictures executives, screenings, and received behind-the-scenes access.
The program explored topics such as cinematography, animation, script-writing, documentary filmmaking, global acquisitions marketing, technology demonstrations, and the art of soundtracking a story. In addition, the four winners also receive cash prizes and Sony Digital Imaging equipment.
The Sony Future Filmmaker Awards jury shared a statement regarding the year’s winners, writing, “The winning films captivate, challenge, and resonate long after viewing. These are artists who command their craft with confidence, execute their vision without compromise, and observe the world with clarity and empathy. What distinguishes the winners, and the wider shortlist, is how far their stories reach – across borders, across cultures; across the full spectrum of human experience. Cinema remains the universal language, and these filmmakers demonstrate that its most essential voices are rising from every corner of the globe. It’s precisely filmmakers of this caliber that the Sony Future Filmmaker Awards were created to discover and to champion.”
Below, the full list of winners.
FICTION
Jack Hughes (UK); “Deadheading”
“When her husband is given months to live, a determined wife sets out to jump the waitlist for his dream allotment garden, by whatever means necessary.”
NON-FICTION
Christine Seow (Singapore); “Two Travelling Aunties”
“Two Singaporean women in their fifties trade conventional life for the open road, embracing newfound freedom and the joy of living life on their terms.”
ANIMATION
Michelle Brøndum & Ida Melum (Denmark/Norway); “Ovary-Acting”
“While stuck at her sister’s baby shower, a thirty-something woman is forced to reflect on whether she wants to have children or not after unexpectedly giving birth to her reproductive organs.”
STUDENT
Ana A. Alpizar (Cuba), New York University, USA; “Norheimsund”
“A long-distance romance with an older Norwegian man promises to lift a Cuban girl and her mother out of poverty, until the fantasy begins to crack.”
FUTURE FORMAT
Innocent Yama Lamido (Nigeria); “Creating Without Permission”
“A meditation on creation and the spaces between moments.”
