The fourth edition of the Sony Future Filmmaker Awards received submissions from more than 8,400 filmmakers representing 162 countries and territories around the world.
The 2026 shortlist spans continents and perspectives across the five categories: Fiction, Non-Fiction, Animation, Student and Future Format. All the shortlisted filmmakers and winner of Future Format are invited to a four-day program and flown to Los Angeles to participate in interactive sessions and masterclasses led by Sony Pictures executives.
The winners of the Fiction, Non-Fiction, Animation and Student categories will be announced on June 11, during a glamorous Awards ceremony at the historic Sony Pictures Studios.
Today, we have also revealed the winner and four commended entries of Future Format, a category that challenges filmmakers to respond to a technical brief exploring the creative possibilities of bold and innovative storytelling. This year, entrants were invited to submit shorts created specifically for vertical viewing (9:16 aspect ratio). Congratulations to Innocent Yama Lamido (Nigeria) for Creating Without Permission. As part of his prize, Lamido receives Sony Digital Imaging equipment and is invited to join the program at Sony Pictures Studios in June.
Andy Reid - Brief Somebodies
Eduardo Braun Costa - The Liars
Gus Flind-Henry & George Malcher - A Sisyphean Task
Jaap Deinum - Babel
Jack Hughes - Deadheading
Jen Nee Lim - Buah (Fruit)
Mitchell Greenberg - Conditions of Release
William Simmons - Helping Hand
Mac Nixon - FLOCK
Kevin Jin Kwan Kim - My Dad, the Rockstar
Christine Seow - Two Travelling Aunties
Freddie Gluck & Matteo Moretti - Gatorville
Abdoul Razak Ceesay - Farming: Kemi's Story
Greeshma Sathiaraj - Mermaids of Mannar
Hélène Sevaux - Four Hands
sawe - Darkness Has Gravity
Muhammad Mehdi - Dreams in Dust
Olaf Lawrence & Charlie Greaves - Green Ocean Gold
Prashant Madan - Showing Up
Sophia Bihailo - Echoes of Menchul
Corin Anderson - Expectation
McKinley Benson - Two Ships
Michelle Brøndum & Ida Melum - Ovary-Acting
Oscar Jacobson - The Undying Pain of Existence
Young Chan Jeon - The History of the Pitiful Humanity
Isabella Villalobos Figueroa, Manuela Ocampo Bustamente, & Juan Camilo Mejía Flórez - Amará
Kleif Alexander Tan & Kai Ming Ng - Mirage
Ana A Alpizar - Norheimsund
Frederik Bösing, Terry Kraatz, & Vera Kayh - Once in a Blue Moon
Talita Brits - Ongeluk (Accident)