The following projects — spanning short films, TV & web series, and screenplays — are the finalists for the January season, competing across 65 categories. These works were selected from an official pool with a 43.7% acceptance rate, drawn from submissions across 15 countries, totaling 20:34:10 of runtime, plus short scripts.

The nominated projects rank within the top 27.8%.

Unlisted categories had no submissions meeting the minimum score threshold.

Categories marked “TBA” had two or fewer projects qualifying for awards consideration. Winners in these categories will be announced together with the rest of the award recipients.

Explore the links to the other sections:

Technical Categories: Nominations for January 2026

Semi-Finalists

Best Indie Short

Ball by Fubao Fan (China)

Character Actor by Sam Anderson (USA)

Whisper of Home by Sahar Ghorishi (USA)

Best Drama Short

Papa Bear by Zara Carter (Australia)

Tale of a Memory by Enrique Fivaller (Spain)

Unruly. by David Ernesto Herrera (UK)

Best Documentary Short

May the River Be Clear and Life Be Long by Jiayin Zhao (USA)

Navigating the Clickety-Clack by Keith Leon S. (USA)

The Uranium Graves by Islam Akel (Turkey)

Best Comedy Short

TBA

Best Thriller Short

Blood in the Pines by David Borges (USA)

Melodies Of The Abyss by Sam Iwata aka Liu (Australia)

Never Leave by Geoff Ryan (USA)

Best Film Noir Short

TBA

Best Sci-Fi Short

TBA

Best Fantasy Short

TBA

Best Western Short

TBA

Best Women Short

TBA

Best Experimental Short

TBA

Best Microfilm

TBA

Best Screendance Short

TBA

Best Music Video

TBA

Best Web Series/TV Pilot

Devil’s Guard: A Long Weekend – Part One by Braydon Leadbetter (USA)

Half A Star – Ep.1 by Anthony Gholson (USA)

The Series 10K by Dan Hertzog (USA)

Best Mockumentary/Docucomedy Short

TBA

Best Parody Short

TBA

Best Trailer/Teaser

TBA

Best Short Script

Black Ram by Adam Brummitt (UK)

Call Me Howie by Howard Brodsky (Canada)

Crime & Punishment 2121 by Jim Norman (USA)

Filotimo by Jessica Pappas and Allison Burnett (USA)

Salazar – Episode 1: A Stray Dog by Malik Myers (USA)

Technical Categories: Nominations for January 2026

Semi-Finalists

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