12th Annual Festigious 2026 - The Nominees

Behind every great independent film is a community of artists who said "yes" to a dream, working against the odds to bring something beautiful into the world. As we look at the official nominees for the 12th Annual Festigious Awards, we don't just see incredible pieces of cinema - we see the heart, hustle, and soul of creators who poured everything they had into the frame.

Leading our celebration this year with a spectacular 7 nominations is Eva's Conundrum, a wonderfully imaginative comedy-drama-fantasy written and directed by Changlong Gong. It’s a film overflowing with joy and creativity, turning a bizarre mannequin mystery into a beautiful testament to friendship and original storytelling.

Sharing that spotlight with 5 nominations each are two deeply passionate projects that capture the incredible range of our community: Shaily Sanghvi’s striking thriller Pandaal - co-written with Naosheen Ahmed, Rutul Desai, and Sagar Nayak, and starring Ahmed in a deeply brave, fierce performance - and The Adventures of Grip Gaffer, a delightful, heartwarming love letter to the film crew family, written and directed by Evan Burdett and starring a magnetic Aaron Latta-Morissette as a gear-wielding hero.

To every writer, director, actor, and crew member who made this list: your dedication keeps the magic of indie film alive. We see your hard work, we love your vision, and we are so incredibly proud to champion you today.

Best of Fest

Eva's Conundrum - Changlong Gong

Between The Mountain and The Sky - Jeremy Power Regimbal

Cerulea - AJ Lambert

So Shot - Troy Guthrie, Bryan Ferriter

Pandaal - Shaily Sanghvi, Naosheen Ahmed, Rutul Desai, Sagar Nayak

Ten in Texas - Twila LaBar, Sam Pfiester, Susan Combs, Kat Sparks, Britt West, Judson Kauffman, Abigail Pfiester Rue

Best Narrative Feature

You Don't Know 2: Discovery of Happiness - YongNam Lee

Ten in Texas - Twila LaBar, Sam Pfiester, Susan Combs, Kat Sparks, Britt West, Judson Kauffman, Abigail Pfiester Rue

So Shot - Troy Guthrie, Bryan Ferriter

Destiny's Race - Andrei Christian Bortica

If I Let It Win - Charles Lednicky

Codes of Life Science Humanity - Jennifer Treur

Best Narrative Short

Eva's Conundrum - Changlong Gong

Wreckless - Tim Troy, Jennifer A. Goodman

You Are Special - Ilya Noyabrev, Semen Khanin

The Adventures of Grip Gaffer - Evan Burdett

Pandaal - Shaily Sanghvi, Naosheen Ahmed, Rutul Desai, Sagar Nayak

Cerulea - AJ Lambert

Best Indie Film

Voicemail - Ruben Machado

The Mother - Lin Yuxin

Collapse - Luoyi Li

Ancestral Thatched Hut - Yuge Ge

Chase - Chao Han

Darlin' - Robert Gamperl, Travis Lee Eller

Best Documentary

Planet Hope - Gergo Elekes, Virág Horváth

Between The Mountain and The Sky - Jeremy Power Regimbal

Justice Brothers - Kieran Hodges

Hope Rising in Kenya - Fabio Zahnd

The Price of Progress, LAX and its neighbors - Kevin Keith Williamson

A Champion's Story-In Memory of My Father - Andrei Bortica

Best Animation

Pushing Up Daisies - Morgan Notari

Elephant Tracks - Josh Martin, Lindsay Newman, Bella Lake

Taichung Gin-Na - Tomas Lin, Scott Chen

Tigre - Maria Victoria Sanchez

Tiny Teaching Tales - Julie Anne Burch

Un-Brella - Kaixi Cathy Yang

Best Music Video

Heaven - Masha Shalagina

MEIN BALLEN by Supercasanova - David Byron Kelley

EMBERS - August Falcon

Neighbor Baphomet - Tomas Lin

What About Me - Alex Visani, Garry S Frost, Frances S Swan, Charles S D'Alberto

Come to Me - Elina Mitelman

Best Student Film

The Adventures of Grip Gaffer - Evan Burdett

Dahlia - Geovanna Escobar

Adam and Eve Are Trending - Parisa Bryant

Ancestral Thatched Hut - Yuge Ge

The Waiting Room - Noah Friend

A Champion's Story-In Memory of My Father - Andrei Bortica

Best Director

Cerulea - AJ Lambert

Pandaal - Shaily Sanghvi

So Shot - Bryan Ferriter

LATE - Jacob Vincent Robicheau

The Shadow - Hongbo Sun

Eva's Conundrum - Changlong Gong

Best First Time Director

Esperandote - Jesus Francisco Schettino

Hunt Of Heart - Stephan Lomax

Voicemail - Ruben Machado

The Guild - Malik Myers

Captive - Jiahui Jiang (Rachel)

The Adventures of Grip Gaffer - Evan Burdett

Best Actor

If I Let It Win - Charles Lednicky

The Shadow - Ralph Valencia, Jr.

The Boy Toy - Rob Jaeger

The Adventures of Grip Gaffer - Aaron Latta-Morissette

Voicemail - Adrian Mas

So Shot - Troy Guthrie

Best Actress

Eva's Conundrum - Rae Cofsky

Don't Read my Diary - Maria Karolina

Pandaal - Naosheen Ahmed

Wreckless - Jennifer A. Goodman

You Don't Know 2: Discovery of Happiness - TaeHee Kim

Dahlia - Cameron Jackson

Best Cinematography

Japanese Punishment - Hugo Will, Denys Kurta

Eva's Conundrum - Max Miles

Destiny's Race - Matei David Reu

Ice Breath - Leonard Alecu

Dakota Stone - Matt Gatherpole

Darlin' - Robert Gamperl

Best Editing

Codes of Life Science Humanity - Jennifer Treur

A Champion's Story-In Memory of My Father - Andrei Bortica

Neighbor Baphomet - Scott Chen

Eva's Conundrum - Changlong Gong

The Adventures of Grip Gaffer - Akhil Deva

Between The Mountain and The Sky - Austin Andrews, Piett Suess

Best Score

Pandaal - Ramesh Kumar Kannan

Between The Mountain and The Sky - Aaron Martin, Dag Rosenqvist

Baron Munchausen (Karl) - Volodymyr Bystryakov

Tigre - Jhonatan Faria

If I Let It Win - Theo Kocher

A Champion's Story-In Memory of My Father - Sorin Raicovescu

Best Original Story

Eva's Conundrum - Changlong Gong

Dahlia - Geovanna Escobar

Waning Poetic - George Massimillo

Love Point Blank - Jason Ortega

The Waiting Room - Noah Friend

Voicemail - Ruben Machado, Ana Gomez

Best Feature Screenplay

Malinalli - Isaac Gracia

When Pigs Fly - Terry Luke Podnar, Ed Charles Learner

The Last Heir - Kurt Weichert

More Going Down - Dennis J Manning

Dreme - Ashok Reddy

The Quiet Fire - Christopher McGuinness

Best Short Screenplay

Almost By Design - Roberta M Roy

Fresh Start - Kevin Willmering

Dearly Departed - Darren Vukasinovic, Josh Vinen

No Nails - John Ravitz

In Love with Regret - Tyre Branton Mills

My Yoga Mat - Michael Monteiro

Best First Time Screenwriter (Feature)

Three Wishes for an Update - Pamela LePage, Garrett Lees

The Mist Beyond Our Window - Thomas Newman

The Perfect Game - Peter T Simon

The Marauder - Robert Logan Armus

Daughter vs The Swindlers - Toni Hills

Best First Time Screenwriter (Short)

If You Show Me Yours I'll Show You Mine - Riya Agarwal

Fido - John Norris Ray

Fresh Start - Kevin Willmering

Pockets - Erik Walker Neill, Anthony DeVine

Wink(le) - Avril Christina David

Best Television Script

Inhospitable Takeover - Michael Hutchinson

The Age of the Empath - Steve Brown

Blood & Betrayal - Joseph Anthony Francis

The Unspoken Sin - Vincent Edwards

Acting International - Irina Vysotskaya

Higher Plane Sacred Vow - Eddie Clay Thompkins III

Special Jury Award - Film

EMBERS - August Falcon

Japanese Punishment - Hugo Will

You Are Special - Ilya Noyabrev, Semen Khanin

Echoes of Us - Joe Rajan

The Butterfly Dream - Suhyeon Scholastica Jin, Aria Suhyun Kim

Cereal Man - Raymond Gaston, Kai Ephron

Special Jury Award - Screenplay

Loving Home - Joseph Anthony Francis

Macho Picchu - Noah Greenspan

The Lady With The Lamp - Ashley Kimberly Anne Schroff, Eric Gerard Sollars

Landry - Eric Gerard Sollars, Michael David Sollars, Geoffrey Durand Sollars

Feral Mountains - Terry Luke Podnar

Bear Day - Marshall Critchfield

A massive congratulations to all of our brilliant 2026 nominees! Your dedication to independent storytelling keeps the magic of cinema alive, and we are honored to celebrate your craft on the world stage.

Think your project has what it takes to stand out on the global festival circuit? The journey toward the the next edition of Festigious is officially underway.

Submissions for our next season are now open submit your film and take your place in the spotlight: https://filmfreeway.com/festigious