Sony Future Filmmaker Awards Showcase Up-and-Coming Talent

Alongside the annual Sony World Photography Awards, Sony and Creo also have a competition dedicated to filmmaking, the Sony Future Filmmaker Awards.

Now in its fourth edition, the 2026 Sony Future Filmmaker Awards entry period closes on December 16, so filmmakers have just a few more weeks to throw their hat in the ring. Filmmakers can enter their short films across four standard categories: Fiction, Non-Fiction, Animation, and Student. There is also a fifth category that rotates each year, challenging filmmakers to respond to a specific technical brief. This year’s “Future Format” category invites filmmakers to enter 9:16 vertical videos, pushing the format to new heights and exploring what 9:16 content can do for cinematic storytelling.

In total, 30 shortlisted videos will be selected, with all 30 filmmakers flown to Sony Pictures Studios in Los Angeles to attend special workshops, have Q&As with Sony Pictures executives, and check out the latest cinema and video technology that Sony is developing. The event culminates in a glamorous awards night at Sony Pictures Studios, which will be attended by established voices in the cinema industry.

Just last week, the Sony Future Filmmaker Awards announced the panel of judges for this year’s contest, including the chair of the jury, award-winning theater, television, and film director Justin Chadwick. Chadwick is best known for Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, The Other Boleyn Girl, Tulip Fever, and The First Grader.

“The shortlist last year brought together 30 exceptional filmmakers whose distinctive voices and compelling narratives earned them a place at the beating heart of Los Angeles’ creative community, giving them unprecedented access to how cinema is evolving in real time,” Chadwick says. “We have a remarkable jury line-up this year, and I speak for us all when I say that we’re searching for films that challenge conventions, spark genuine emotion, and transform how audiences perceive the world around them. As we head into the 2026 edition, we’re eager to discover that kernel of originality and vision that elevates good filmmaking into something extraordinary.”

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Chadwick is joined by writer, director, and producer Will Gluck; President of Film and Television at Pascal Pictures, Rachel O’Connor; and Sony Pictures Animation co-director Adam Rosette. These four judges will begin deliberating once the competition’s entry period closes, and the shortlisted filmmakers will be unveiled in 2026.

Complete entry information and rules are available on the Sony Future Filmmaker Awards website. There, people can also check out the winning films from the first three editions of the contest. Trailers for the five category-winning films from the 2025 Sony Future Filmmaker Awards are also included throughout this story.

Image credits: Sony Future Filmmaker Awards