“Cotton Fever,” “Here I’m Alive” and “Summer of Three” are among this year’s Tribeca Festival winners.
In the narrative competition category, the top winners were Daniel Blake Schwartz’s “Cotton Fever” and Joshua Z Weinstein’s “Here I’m Alive,” with Marcel Ruiz, Paolo Schoene and Kiki Montilla taking home awards for their performances in “Summer of Three,” Carlitos Ruiz-Ruiz, Mariana S. Belaval and Ruiz winning for writing “Summer of Three,” and Tom Acton Fitzgerald winning for his “Cotton Fever” cinematography.
“This year’s award winners embody the spirit of Tribeca: fearless work that crosses borders, expands the form, and reveals the power of storytelling to uncover humanity in unexpected places,” festival director and SVP of programming Cara Cusumano said in a statement. “As we celebrate our 25th year, these artists remind us that powerful stories do more than entertain, they deepen our empathy, broaden our perspective, and bring us closer together.”
The New York City-based festival closes out on Suday. As previously announced, A$AP Rocky is taking home the director of the year award. The audience award, determined by votes throughout the festival, will be revealed later.
Check out the full list of 2026 winners and special jury mentions below:
Founders Award for Best U.S. Narrative Feature Sponsored by OKX: “Cotton Fever,” directed by Daniel Blake Schwartz (United States)
Special Jury Mention for Best U.S. Narrative Feature: “Here I’m Alive,” directed by Joshua Z Weinstein (United States) – World Premiere
Best Performance in a U.S. Narrative Feature: Marcel Ruiz, Paolo Schoene, and Kiki Montilla for “Summer of Three” (Puerto Rico) – World Premiere
Best Screenplay in a U.S. Narrative Feature: Carlitos Ruiz-Ruiz, Marcel Ruiz, and Mariana S. Belaval for “Summer of Three” (Puerto Rico) – World Premiere
Best Cinematography in a U.S. Narrative Feature: Tom Acton Fitzgerald for “Cotton Fever” (United States) – World Premiere
Best International Narrative Feature: “Labrador – Autopsy of Silence,” directed by Rodrigue Jean (Canada) – World Premiere
Best Performance in an International Narrative Feature: Christopher Angatookalook for “Labrador – Autopsy of Silence” (Canada) – World Premiere
Special Jury Mention for Best Performance in an International Feature: Duda Santos & Mc Nem for “Funk” (Brazil) – World Premiere
Best Screenplay in an International Narrative Feature: Alex Camilleri for “Zejtune” (Malta, Germany, Qatar) – North American Premiere
Best Cinematography in an International Narrative Feature: Mathieu Laverdière for “Labrador – Autopsy of Silence” (Canada) – World Premiere
Best Documentary Feature: “Jail Time Records,” directed by Dione Roach and Steve Happi (Cameroon, United States) – World Premiere
Special Jury Mention for Best Documentary Feature: “Time Warp,” directed by Allison Berg (United States) – World Premiere
Best Cinematography in a Documentary Feature: Dione Roach, Urberto Rapisardi and Steve Happi for “Jail Time Records” (Cameroon, United States) – World Premiere
Special Jury Mention for Best Cinematography in a Documentary Feature: Lukas Gut for “Siege of Paradise” (Ireland, Switzerland) – World Premiere
Best Editing in a Documentary Feature: Rebecca Adorno and Viridiana Lieberman for “Jean-Michel” (United Kingdom) – World Premiere
Special Jury Mention for Best Editing in a Documentary Feature: Christopher A. Peterson and Peter Norrey for “American Zoo” (United Kingdom) – World Premiere
“Crocodile,” directed by The Critics and Pietra Brettkelly (Nigeria, New Zealand) – North American Premiere
Special Jury Mention for Viewpoints Award: Sarah Karei for “One Woman One Bra” (Kenya, Nigeria) – North American Premiere
Miiku Sakanishi for “Memorizu” (Japan) – World Premiere
Special Jury Mention, Best New Narrative Director: Elisee Junior St. Preux for “The Tropic Sun and His Eyes” (Haiti) – World Premiere
ALBERT MAYSLES AWARD FOR BEST NEW DOCUMENTARY DIRECTOR
Dione Roach and Steve Happi for “Jail Time Records” (Cameroon, United States) – World Premiere
Special Jury Mention, Albert Maysles Award: Natalie Baszile and Hyacinth Parker for “Harvest” (United States) – World Premiere
The Nora Ephron Award will honor an exceptional female filmmaker who represents the spirit and vision of the legendary filmmaker and writer.
Dina Duma for “Skateboarding Is Not for Girls” (North Macedonia, Belgium, Slovenia, Croatia) – World Premiere
Best Narrative Short: “32B,” directed by Mohamed Taher (Egypt) – World Premiere
Special Jury Mention, Narrative Short: “So, Boom,” directed by Abby Pierce (United States) – New York Premiere
Best Documentary Short: “Listen,” directed by Taliesin Black Brown (United States) – World Premiere
Special Jury Mention, Documentary Short: “The Baddest Speechwriter of All,” directed by Ben Proudfoot and Stephen Curry (United States) – New York Premiere
Best Animated Short: “Violet and Marlowe Rob a Bank,” directed by Wesley Wang (United States) – World Premiere
Special Jury Mention, Animated Short: “Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe,” directed by Andrea Szelesová (Czech Republic, Slovakia) – North American Premiere
Best New York Short: “Insufficient Fare,” directed by Michael Gugger and Varvara Kanellakopoulou (United States) – World Premiere
Best Music Video: “Fingers Crossed” – The Moth & The Flame, directed by Rebecca Thomas (United States) – World Premiere
Student Visionary Award: “Found&Lost,” directed by Reza Rasouli (Austria) – New York Premiere
“There are No Ghosts at the Grand,” directed by Anil Glendinning and Rachel Glendinning (United Kingdom) – World Premiere
Audio Nonfiction Reporting Award: “The Fastest Girl in Somalia,” directed by Teresa Krug (United States) – World Premiere
Audio Fiction Award: “THE DOUBLE[S],” directed by Winnie Kemp and Alexander Kemp (United States) – World Premiere
Audio Investigative Nonfiction Award: “The Most Wanted Olympian,” directed by Michelle Shephard (Canada) – World Premiere
Audio Memoir Award: “Reaching Out,” directed by Sayre Quevedo (United States) – World Premiere
Sid Gopinath, Aditya Joshi and Alifya Ali for “Minnesota Goodbye”
Best Commercial: Last Coke in the Desert from Coca-Cola
Best Commercial Honorable Mention: : Bang Bang from Safe School Las Vegas
Best Episodic Honorable Mention: Partners from Carvana
Best Content Creator/Influencer: The Master of Speed & Stability from Beats
Best Audio/Podcast: To Catch a Thief: China’s Rise to Cyber Supremacy from Rubrik
Social Impact Award: The Philipstown WireCar Grand Prix from Accenture / Philipstown WireCar Co.
Environmental Impact Award: The Theory of Spice from Yogi Tea