Sundance Film Festival Announces 2026 Trailblazer and Vanguard Award Honorees

Posted on December 18, 2025 by admin

The Sundance Institute has announced the recipients of its 2026 Trailblazer and Vanguard Awards, honoring filmmakers whose work continues to shape independent cinema. Academy Award–winning director Chloé Zhao will receive the Trailblazer Award, while Nia DaCosta and Geeta Gandbhir will be honored with Vanguard Awards for fiction and nonfiction, respectively.

The awards will be presented at Celebrating Sundance Institute: A Tribute to Founder Robert Redford on January 23, 2026, at the Grand Hyatt Deer Valley in Utah. The 2026 Sundance Film Festival runs January 22 through February 1, with an online program available January 29–February 1.

Zhao is being recognized for films including Songs My Brothers Taught Me, The Rider, and Nomadland, which won three Academy Awards. Her latest feature, Hamnet (2025), has earned multiple audience awards and major awards-season nominations.

The Vanguard Award for Fiction will go to DaCosta, whose recent work includes Hedda (2025), Candyman, and The Marvels. Her next film, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, arrives in theaters in January 2026.

Gandbhir will receive the Vanguard Award for Nonfiction following the success of The Perfect Neighbor, which premiered at Sundance 2025 and won the U.S. Documentary Directing Award.

The event will also honor Sundance founder Robert Redford, with the inaugural Robert Redford Luminary Award presented to Gyula Gazdag and Ed Harris. Proceeds support Sundance Institute’s year-round artist development programs.

2026 Sundance Film Festival Reveals Short Film Program

Posted on December 15, 2025 by admin

Top L–R: La Tierra Del Valor (The Home of the Brave), Mangittatuarjuk (The Gnawer of Rocks), Luigi, The Bird’s Placebo
Center Row L–R: Candy Bar, Taga, DON’T TELL MAMA, The Boys and the Bees
Bottom L–R: Jazz Infernal, Albatross, I’m Glad You’re Dead Now, Busy Bodies

The Sundance Film Festival has announced the 54 short films selected for its 2026 edition, spotlighting new work across fiction, nonfiction, and animation from filmmakers around the world. The shorts will screen in eight curated programs as part of the festival’s official lineup.

The 2026 festival will take place January 22–February 1 in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah, with an online at-home program running January 29–February 1. In addition to the new selections, Sundance will present a Park City Legacy short film program featuring films from past editions.

This year’s short film lineup was chosen from more than 11,000 submissions, representing 22 countries and territories. The program continues Sundance’s long-standing role as a launchpad for emerging filmmakers, many of whom have gone on to shape contemporary independent cinema.

Individual tickets for in-person and online screenings go on sale January 14.

The 2026 Sundance Film Festival Short Films are:

U.S. FICTION SHORT FILMS

Albatross / U.S.A. (Director and Screenwriter: Amandine Thomas, Screenwriter and Producer: Gerardo Coello Escalante, Producers: Zach Wechter, Valerie Bush, Carlos López Estrada, Glenn Kiser, Amanda Schneider). Maria, burdened with caregiving for her sick husband, gets invited to a party. Cast: Georgina Saldaña Wonchee, Patrick O’Brien, Ciro Suárez. World Premiere. Available online for public.
Continue reading →

Wregas Bhanuteja’s Levitating Set for World Premiere in Sundance World Cinema Competition

Posted on December 12, 2025 by admin

Levitating (Para Perasuk), the latest film from award-winning Indonesian filmmaker Wregas Bhanuteja (Photocopier, Andragogy), will world premiere in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. A teaser trailer and poster for the film have been released ahead of the festival.

The film stars Angga Yunanda as Bayu, a young man living in Latas Village, a suburban community known for its traditional trance rituals passed down through generations. When the village’s sacred spring central to its spiritual practices, faces eviction, Bayu sets out to become a lead spirit channeler in hopes of raising funds to save it. His journey forces him to confront the limits of ambition and the deeper meaning of spiritual responsibility.

Levitating features a prominent Indonesian cast including international music icon Anggun in her acting debut, Maudy Ayunda in her first film role since Losmen Bu Broto, as well as Bryan Domani, Chicco Kurniawan, and veteran actor Indra Birowo.

Blending cultural ritual with coming-of-age drama, Levitating continues Bhanuteja’s exploration of identity, belief, and social pressure within contemporary Indonesian life.

Vertical Acquires Sundance Winner “Atropia” Starring Alia Shawkat and Callum Turner for December Release

Posted on October 16, 2025 by admin

Alia Shawkat | Courtesy: Vertical

Vertical has acquired North American rights to Hailey Gates’ feature directorial debut “Atropia,” winner of the U.S. Grand Jury Prize for Dramatic Feature at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. The film, starring Alia Shawkat (Severance) and Callum Turner (Masters of the Air), will open in theaters this December.

The ensemble cast includes Chloë Sevigny, Jane Levy, Tim Heidecker, Lola Kirke, Zahra Alzubaidi, and Jamie McShane. Produced by Luca Guadagnino, Naima Abed, Emilie Georges, Lana Kim, and Jett Steiger, the film marks Gates’ transition from documentary to narrative storytelling.

In Atropia, an aspiring actress (Shawkat) working at a simulated military training facility falls for a soldier (Turner) cast as an insurgent, blurring the line between reality and performance. Inspired by real-life desert role-play camps, Gates conceived the idea after visiting similar installations in California.

“I couldn’t be more thrilled that it’s found a home with Vertical, a company that takes bold creative swings,” said Gates. Vertical Partner Peter Jarowey added, “Hailey has created an impressive debut led by an outstanding cast and set in a world rarely seen on screen.”

The deal was negotiated by Jarowey and Tony Piantedosi for Vertical, with UTA Independent Film Group and WME Independent representing the filmmakers.