Award Winners 2026
Best Sound design / Best production design / best actress (Jessica Temple)
mimic
DIRECted by Christopher Bonwell - UK - 15mins - SCI-fi
Maggie, the last remaining Mimic in England, has her world turned upside down by a patient and the lines of her reality start to blur.
Best UK Feature Film / Best supporting actor (jack mcevoy) / best score
the hook
DIRECted by Thomas David Beatty - UK - 1hr 38mins - Comedy
A family band. 3 burnt out brothers, an undervalued sister, a cornucopia of addictions, oversized ego's, murderous resentments, delusions of grandeur, washed out morals and rapidly fading success culminates in a whirlwind dark comedy.
The Hook is a portrait of chasing success in the music industry, exposing the toll of addiction and the mental battles that come with the price of ambition.
Best international feature film / Best SFX
touch me
DIRECted by Addison Heimann - Usa - 1hr 40mins - sci-fi | erotica | Comedy
Two best friends become addicted to the heroin-like touch of an alien narcissist who is trying to take over the world.
best editing / best supporting actress (eliza butterworth) / best of bedford
Chasing Adonis
DIRECted by Tom Gordon - UK - 15mins - drama |Thriller
Danny has always struggled with his reflection. After being rejected for a major acting role for not having "the right look," his insecurities spiral into obsession. Fixated on transforming his body, he follows the extreme fitness regime of social media influencer Rex, pushing himself beyond his limits. As his dangerous fixation deepens, his physical and mental health suffer, straining his relationship with Rachel and distancing him from the world around him. Even after achieving his dream physique and landing his big break, he remains at war with his own image. Chasing Adonis offers a haunting look at the silent struggles of muscle dysmorphia and the pressures placed on men to attain an impossible ideal.
Best vfx
STALKER
DIRECted by David Cholewa - france - 19mins - horror |Thriller
After a vicious assault at a party, a young woman flees the scene. And as she walks back home on a gloomy and threatening Paris night, she can't shake the feeling that she's being followed. As she gets closer to her residence, the presence becomes more and more bold and aggressive. And it is only by confronting her deepest inner fears that she will be able to survive the ominous threat.
best animation
Great Googly
DIRECted by Julia Gordon - UK - 3mins - animation - student film
Ever wonder where that missing sock went? Hank, a curious sock, wants to escape the confines of his laundry basket and explore the wonders of the outside world. However, his journey to the front door might not go as smoothly as he had hoped...
best horror / best actor (david wayman)
NFT: Cursed Images
DIRECted by Jonas Odenheimer - UK - 1hr 13mins - horror
A group of crypto savvy friends begin experiencing strange occurrences after buying into a cursed NFT collection.
best sci-fi
ignis oppidum
DIRECted by Maxence Bossé|Nolan Corlay - france - 25mins - sci-fi
In a desert world, plagued by war and climate change, Dionne, an inhabitant of the city of Ignis Oppidum's, worships the Aura, the machine that governs her people. She gets the honor of being appointed as a “flamine”, an aura's apostle. Accompanied by her mentor Theneris, a flamine as well, she'll take on a pilgrimage that will change her forever.
best drama
THE SUICIDE SHIFT
DIRECted by Paul Laight - UK - 13mins - dramA
Banished to the “suicide shift” for breaking spirit call centre regulations, CARMILLA FERRY, now deals with the most tortured of souls moving from this world to the next. After being blasted by her line manager on the phone, Russell, Carmilla is feeling even more isolated and demoralised than usual. After a series of heart-crushing calls, culminating in a particularly stressful shift, Carmilla is then faced with the most heart-wrenching call of all.
best comedy
ha'penny dip
DIRECted by Miles Berkley-Smith|Jodie Woodall - UK - 10mins - comedy
Centering around the four main characters: Bill, Sandra, Gary and Fox. Who, due to lack of options, are forced to rob a bank - the bank they all work at.
best thriller
THE SHADOW
DIRECted by Kyran Townley - UK - 9mins - Thriller |Fantasy
While walking home alone one night, The Woman senses a mysterious presence tracking her every move. Desperate to escape, she taps into a hidden ability — but no matter how far she runs, The Shadow remains close behind. With nowhere left to turn, she must finally confront the darkness pursuing her and uncover the truth it holds.
best documentary
Portraits of Karlag
DIRECted by Theo Maximilian Goble - UK - 1hr 38mins - Feature | documentary
After learning about his German Grandfather's experience during WWII, an English filmmaker goes on a pilgrimage to Kazakhstan where he is exposed to the the horrors of Karlag, The largest running Soviet forced labour camp that spread right across the Karaganda region.
best cinematography / best international short film
a Mother's love
DIRECted by Harald Schwarzenbacher - austria - 21mins - drama
Beate, 43, lives with her husband Uwe and their eight-year-old son Benjamin in a small town. On the surface, they appear to be an ordinary family—yet they are still reeling from the tragic bus accident that claimed the life of their eldest daughter, twelve-year-old Jana. The loss continues to weigh heavily on Beate, piercing through her daily life like a wound that refuses to heal.
When Benjamin is unexpectedly summoned to the police for questioning, Beate learns that her own son carries partial responsibility for the accident.
best director (konstantin eronin)
Redemption
DIRECted by Konstantin Eronin - russia - 1hr 40mins - Horror
The film tells the story of a veteran of the Russian-Turkish War who returns to his village, where his son is accused of having connections with the devil. The story tells about the confrontation between different poles of faith in the struggle for the fate of a child.
Best International student film
After you, love remains
DIRECted by Gabi Cerqueiro - SPain - 15mins - drama - student film
“After you, love remains” (originally “después de ti, más amor”) is a personal portray of the phases of love: discovery, wholeness, fracture and rebirth. With a voice over narration of original poems, the short film presents an intimate and symbolical scenery bringing to light the ways in which love transforms us, brakes us and, still, encourages us to keep our faith in it.
best uk student film
Le Prince Du Cinéma
DIRECted by Raffaella Warren-Barbieri - UK - 13mins - drama |period
student film
Inspired by true events. Louis Le Prince, a photographer in 1880s Leeds, tries to create the world’s first moving image. Confusing the lines between fiction and reality, Louis slowly realises that something darker has been praying for his success all along.
Best uk short film
bleeding
DIRECted by Dany Horiuchi - UK - 5mins - drama
Mollie, a young woman in her twenties, is struggling with her mental health. She writes a diary entry, pouring out all the emotions she can’t express aloud. Her words reveal the depth of her isolation and the hopelessness of feeling all this pain bleed out of her without anyone noticing.
